


What Now

by Marta_TP



Series: What The Hell Series [2]
Category: Orphan Black (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-09
Updated: 2017-11-21
Packaged: 2018-03-11 08:03:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 54,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3320096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marta_TP/pseuds/Marta_TP
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"What If" sequel. Having returned to France, Delphine's convinced her life can continue to go on like before and it does, for eight months. Until she has to deal with the clones' visit and the mess she has left behind. (Cophine centric, but with the other dudes)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Like it says in the summary, this is the sequel of "What If", so you kind of need to read it to understand what's going on here (you can go, I'll wait!)
> 
> I'm going to start with one small chapter and this is probably gonna end up being somewhere around 10 chapters, but those who read my other stories know I'm not really good at predicting these kind of things. Also, this story it's not for the Cophine soft hearts, so consider yourself warned. Also, also there will be smut and I will not separate it like I did in What If, so plot will be mixed with explicit sexy times.

She wakes up even before her alarm goes off and if it's true that usually she would take that chance to stay lazily in bed, stealing some precious extra minutes from the morning, today Delphine can't do it. In fact she hardly got any sleep at all, her brain pulling at her conscious every other hour, keeping her awake, her mind rumbling in a state of half awareness. She can't say still and has to get up, moving for the kitchen and getting the coffee machine going.

She's already sipping her coffee, absently looking out the window of her twentieth floor apartment, right in the city center, when she feels soft arms snaking around her waist, followed by gentle lips kissing her bare shoulder.

"You're up early." The familiar voice brings her back to reality. It was probably one of the first things that got Delphine's attention, all those years ago, the smooth, light voice, never demanding and yet always able to captivate her attention.

"The American clones are visiting our facility today." Delphine explains, her eyes still focused outside, but stretches her neck for her lover to continue the teasing. "I don't want to be late."

"You mean, Cosima's visiting." The arms moving from her waist and the comfortable warmth moving away from her back.

Delphine turns and watches Claire filling a cup of coffee for herself, not knowing how to answer her girlfriend's implication without sounding too defensive. So instead she just moves to their bedroom and gets the things for her shower. When she returns Claire's there, casually laid on their bed, moving her eyes from her phone to meet Delphine's.

"Is this something we need to talk about?" She asks.

"No, it is not." Delphine answers, taking out of her closet one of her many perfectly tailored skirts, choosing the light gray and a white button up shirt.

"Good." Claire says, moving on the bed until she's on her knees right in front of the blonde, pulling her closer by the hips until Delphine lowers her head for a quick kiss.

"I'm going to be late." Delphine says against the other woman's lips, when she notices Claire's not about to let her go that easily.

"I think we have time..." It doesn't take much for Delphine to surrender to her request. It never did.

She's running late or maybe not as early as she wanted, even if it only takes a fifteen minutes ride in the metro, from her place to the DYAD Institute in Paris, but Delphine had planned to get done everything she had to today before she has to deal with the clones' arrival and all the confusion it would inevitably create. With the second coffee of the day steady on her hand, she walks to her office and tries to concentrate on what she has to do.

But Delphine finds herself unable to do so and she knows damn well why.  _Cosima._ It doesn't matter what she told Claire, Delphine knows she allowed the endearing clone to cut much deeper than she initially intended. That is the one thing her girlfriend doesn't know, nor will she ever, if it's up to her. It's a breach in the trust they built their relationship on, but the blonde considers it relatively benign: it's not like she sees Cosima every day. They are in different continents, a big ocean between them and even if they are to cross paths again, it will never be for long periods of time or regularly. It doesn't matter, in the end it won't make any difference.

The first week after she returned, however, was difficult. She never thought about hiding what happened from Claire, but if she had, Delphine wouldn't get away with it, the mark on her neck, left by Cosima, would've given her away. It persisted for almost a week and when it was gone the doctor experienced a mixture of relief and sudden lost. The last trace of the night spent with the clone gone. No longer did she need to hide the evidence of the daring set of lips from the outside world with a scarf in the warm weather of the early autumn. But she also lost the constant remainder of Cosima's lips every time she looked at herself in the mirror.

Claire had complained about it, more in a joking way than anything else and didn't make an attempt to cover Cosima's brand with her own. "That's what you get for fooling around with college kids." She had said, while kissing down Delphine's bare torso, shortly after she arrived from the airport. The blonde had told her girlfriend about Cosima after the examination in the clone's hotel room. It was not that she needed permission, but they had agreed to inform one another if something like that was likely to hapen and the other wasn't present.

That was not the first time it happened with Delphine and it wasn't the last either. Sometimes they could go months without being with someone else, sometimes weeks. It made no difference, but apart from the information clause they have two more rules: protection and always come back (both physically and emotionally).

They had been dating for nearly six months when they decided to make those rules, until then they tried to be exclusive, but the nature of the two women was contrary to such restrictions and it was tearing them apart. However, there was love and desire for each other, it never faded and neither of them really wanted to end. One day, when Delphine and Claire had returned from a night out, more drunk than they would've ever admit they finally talked about it. The first few times were weird, to say the least, finding themselves unable to look the other in the eye, but as time passed by they got comfortable with the new situation. It is better this way, if Delphine or Claire want someone else, they let each other know and make their move. It works out well for them, it prevents them to fall into the bitterness, which would eventually poison their relation.

In the beginning Delphine thought that removing the illicit aspect of the thing would make it less exciting, but she was proven wrong, it didn't make it less exciting, although it did make it more comfortable, knowing that at the end of the day she can return home to someone who loves her and understands the way she is. It is not unusual for her to wake up in the morning and, looking at the bright green eyes peeking open as well, considers herself lucky to have beaten the odds, to have found someone who thinks like her about the connection between sex and love.

It's not that one is absolutely disconnected from the other, but she's not naive to the point of believing one needs to be in love to feel desire or to want to be desired. No, if she thinks that love cannot exist without sex, the contrary premise fails to be realistic. Delphine did not love everyone she had sex with, maybe when she was young, yes, but even then... She is not sure, specially since the notion of love changes during the course of life.

She was still a teen when she discovered that relationships were really not her thing. She started by dating men, but no matter how hard she tried to ignore it, there was always a part of her that was curious about how it would be like to feel the softer, less demanding touch of a woman. Eventually she came to terms with it and started to casually date both, not settling for one or another, even today. If it's true that women hold a especial charm, sometimes she just wants something simple and straightforward.

She was 25 and convinced she was sentenced not to have a long term relationship for the time being when she met Claire, with her soft voice and even softer hands. Claire took her by surprise, charming her with her fast mind and easy going spirit. Out one night the tall, lean figure caught Delphine's eye and they ended the night and better part of the morning getting familiar with each other's bodies. They decided to give it a shot, Delphine completely smitten by the girl and her glowing, black, long hair and tanned completion.

Their relationship is not a simple one, but it saves them from the heartache of finding out about one of them cheating. And it would hapen, if it had not been Claire to pull the trigger first than would have been Delphine, for sure.

The phone on Delphine's desk rings. "They're here!"


	2. Chapter 2

Delphine sets down the phone and takes a deep breath. She doesn't claim to know everything, but at this point there are two things that are absolute truths: she's not ready for this and Cosima will not be happy to see her again. However, knowing those two facts ahead of time it's not challenging nor does it help Delphine to find out how to act.

She shouldn't have left things the way she did. It was stupid and, worst of all, made Delphine vulnerable to any attack coming from the other other woman, for the simple fact that they will end up being, most likely, justified. The main problem is that there's no way Delphine can explain the way she acted without stepping foot in some very dangerous territory.

She can't just tell Cosima that, when she woke up, that night, so many months ago, at five a.m., she simply panicked. Looking at the small woman, sound asleep, carefully wrapped around the blonde's arms, she felt there were thoughts in her mind that would create a situation she didn't ( _doesn't!_ ) want to address. Delphine's instincts was to pack her things and leave immediately, she didn't tell anyone she was leaving ahead of time, just the young man at the front desk of the hotel.

Of course, in doing so, Delphine ended up arriving way too early at the airport, resulting in spending nearly six hours there, waiting for her flight. Nevertheless that was preferable than to wake up next to the young woman and have a conversation she desperately wanted to avoid, no matter the direction it took. So, she left, in the middle of the night, like someone who was ashamed of what happened, when, in fact, she was just scared of having to deal with the clone who made her feel like she was fooling herself in thinking she had her life under control.

Pushing those memories aside, Delphine gets up, determined to survive the clones' visit with minimum damage to her life. She passes her long fingers over her waves of blonde hair, to give it some life and opens the door but stops, somehow not sure if arriving empty handed is the best decision. If she's nervous, Delphine always feels better when she has something in her hands, anything at all. She walks back to her desk and grabs the first folder her hands lay on and gets back to the door, noticing her lab coat hanged on it, which she puts on, not really sure why and finally leaves.

Delphine tries to look calm, politely waving her hand in "hello" fashion to the colleagues she crosses with in the hallway, but inside she's a mess, the sound of blood rushing fills her ears, taking quick breaths.

The doctor crosses the door to the lobby, but doesn't step inside, she just stays there and observes. Dr. Jacqueline Courbet, the head of DYAD France is receiving the three clones who came: Sarah, Alison and, of course, Cosima. The clone in glasses seems at least in a good mood, talking lively, her hands in constant motion. Still a little hesitantly, Delphine gives a few steps closer to where everyone else is, certain that her presence has gone unnoticed so far. However, when she's just two steps away, her eyes still locked in Cosima's features, she sees the dreadlocked woman shift a little and deep brown eyes stare at her for just a heartbeat before they get back to who's in front of the young woman.

"Bonjour à tous, welcome to Paris." Delphine says, giving the last two steps. Looking between the clones' faces, the blonde knows she won't find any friends here. "I hope you all made a good journey and that the accommodations are to your liking." She then says, deciding to keep things professional, it is the best way to avoid further friction.

Sarah steps forward and looks straight at Delphine, ignoring the fact that the  _actual_  head of the French branch is in front of her. "Oh yeah! A fancy hotel with plenty to trash and a stocked bar it's all we need." She comments with a joking smile. "I wonder what the DYAD wants from us if they seem so invested in having us so well taken cared of."

The French swallows down the uneasiness Sarah causes on her and puts on her best polite smile. "We just want you to be comfortable, Sarah. I assure you, there's no secondary intentions on our side."

"Of course not!" Alison intervenes, giving her impeccable ponytail a brush with her left hand. "Because DYAD doesn't do that sort of thing. Always correct!"

Sarah approaches the nervous clone and gives a little tug at her elbow and when Alison's stare moves from the doctor to the punk clone, Sarah widens her eyes slightly. In the meantime Cosima's stuck staring at Delphine, her face neutral, not showing any signs of emotion. The blonde has no idea whether that's a good or a bad thing. If, on one hand she's happy to see that Cosima's first reaction when her eyes set upon her wasn't to scream and shout; in another the void of emotions Delphine sees in the clone's expression causes her heart to tremble at the possibility that, what happened between them in a solitary night months ago, meant nothing to Cosima.

In reality, she should feel relieved. If that's the case, it makes things a lot easier and the interaction between the two of them doesn't need to be starin, filled with awkward silences. Yes, that should be all true and, yet, it isn't. Some hidden part of Delphine was clinging to that memory, holding it close to her chest, only to pull it out when things were not going her way. It doesn't matter what it was making her feel down, if she flashed in her mind little moments of her time together with Cosima, her world got a little brighter.

The doctor cleans her thoughts. "I believe I can take it from here." She says to her direct boss, who agrees and leaves. "If you want to, I'll show you around." She turns her attention to the three women with identical faces.

"Course!" Cosima speaks for the first time, but her voice, like her expression, doesn't show any emotion.

Delphine walks in the direction of the main lab. "Dr. Leekie was very pleased to know that you decided to accept our offer to visit the Paris facilities." She says as she walks.

"So, he's still the one calling the shots." Sarah deduces.

"Yes." Delphine looks at Alison. "You're little… display had that effect. Whatever Dr. Bowles was planning, she put the brakes on it."

"And she's still working with the DYAD?" Cosima raises her brow and the French nods in response. "Hmm… I thought that after her evil plan was uncovered she would get the boot."

"Dr. Bowles is a very important member of the DYAD Institute, it's not easy to let her go." Delphine gives them the same explanation she got when she asked the same question, shortly after she returned from the States.

"Really?" Cosima chuckles. "Well… I have a very different theory."

They stop near the door for the lab and Delphine looks for the card in her pocket to swipe it open. "And what theory is that?" She asks, opening the door.

"I think she knows too much for the DYAD to afford to let her go." The tattooed clone offers, passing in front of Delphine to enter the lab.

"All DYAD employees sign a confidentiality agreement when they are asked to join our most… sensitive projects." The doctor follows the rest of the women inside.

"When you say sensitive, what you really mean is illegal." Sarah says, moving around the big open space, her hands touching everything on her way. "And I have the feeling that those agreements won't hold in court, if it reaches that far."

Delphine's eyes follow the punk clone as she sits in one of the stools and peers through a microscope. She's not surprised that they reached all these conclusions by themselves, but it's her understanding that this is not the area of expertise of someone like Sarah, who's spent the best part of her life in the wrong side of the law.

"I thought Beth would also come." Delphine says casually.

"She's busy!" Alison blurts out in a way that doesn't invite any more requests for explanations.

So Delphine just hums and looks at Cosima, moving around closer to the glass cabinets and reading the labels. She won't find anything that Delphine - or better, her boss - doesn't want her to. Last week was spent cleaning some labs, this one included, of everything that was unfit for unruly eyes.

As if she's sensing Delphine's stare on her, Cosima looks at her and opens a small smile. "It must be very exciting working in a place like this, that has everything you need. No fighting over budgets and all that crap."

It sounds inviting and Delphine gives a few steps in the smaller woman's direction. "Yes, it is." She approaches, but doesn't invade Cosima's personal space.

"Too bad they use all of this the way they do." Cosima smile fades and her eyes leave Delphine.

"DYAD has many areas of work, you know that Cosima." Despite noticing the sudden coldness in the clone's demeanor, the doctor moves forward. "Besides, the clones' project was shut down years ago, the only thing that remains is what's necessary to keep you safe and make sure…"

"Don't sell it to me, Delphine." The clone says fast, moving her eyes to the French. "I'm not the right audience for that bullshit!"

"Cosi…" Delphine starts, but the petite woman is already moving away and she's left standing watching her walk to where the other two clones are, with her hands securing the folder she still has on her arms.

"Alright… What else do you have?" Sarah asks, getting up from the bench.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't tell me that the all powerful DYAD only has this to show." The rougher clone's hands move around the room as if displaying an evidence.

Delphine's eyes go briefly to Cosima, who's looking down and then return to Sarah's expression of defiance. The scientist gives them the rest of the tour to the facilities, or at least what was approved ahead of time; DYAD might be invested in wanting the clones to cooperate, but that it's not without restrictions. When Dr. Leekie called and informed Delphine of his intention to invite the clones to visit, she wasn't sure exactly what he pretended to achieve with that, and today she still doesn't know, but one thing she's sure about: the institute wants them happy. If Delphine didn't know any better, she would be naïve enough to believe that was the end of it - they're just looking after their  _projects_. However, her experience in working in DYAD has showed her that nothing they do is without meaning, with DYAD there's always something else - an hidden agenda.

The French doesn't mind playing the tour guide and echo the words which were said to her for the clones. For now… But if she has an hint that the clones could, somehow, become in danger with their activity, she will no longer be a part of it. So she'll do it and be sure to maintain a position that will allow her to help if what she fears turns out to be truth. Delphine will do that, while at the same time refuses to contemplate why she, so suddenly, decided to change her allegiances.

Even when she started to work with DYAD, Delphine never fed the ideology that everything they did was above board, no one gets the amount of power they have without some backdoor deals. But she was young and eager, those things didn't bother her, as long as she found a way to stay clean. Today, Delphine doesn't regret her decision to work with them, but she wishes she had done a few things a little different. However, the blonde is a pragmatic person and not one to linger in the past - it's done, move on! She believes that ideologies are a luxury than only a fortunate few can afford. If something made her change her mind about DYAD it has nothing to do with morals or ethics…

The tour took better part of the morning, Delphine had imagined that after she showed two or three labs the clones would be happy, but they never complain about the repetition of the visit and, even if she expected as much from Cosima, the other two were a different matter, but no. In fact, what surprised the doctor the most was that, during the entire tour, Sarah was the one pushing forward, while Cosima and Alison seemed to stay behind most of the times.

Their last stop is the DYAD's library, a big room with two floors, stacked with books top to bottom. It is the crown jewel of the French branch and it's not unusual for members of other countries to come here just to use it, since some books are too  _sensitive_  to leave the installations. The headquarters of DYAD might be in the States, but here it's the center of its knowledge.

Delphine was explaining all this when Sarah interrupted her. "You expect me to believe that people still spend hours bend over a book in this dusty room?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I said." Delphine said, nodding. The clone's bad attitude was getting to her and she doesn't like to be pushed around, which seems exactly what Sarah's trying to do.

"What Sarah's trying to ask is if…" Cosima says in a conciliatory way, but stops to carefully think about her next words. "All this information is computerized. Like databases and stuff like that.

"I mean… you have all this stuff." The tattooed arm goes around the room. "Wouldn't it be easier to… you know."

"We have a log with the information necessary to find a specific book or the books regarding a specific subject, like any other big library." Delphine says, but in her mind there's something else bothering her. "But if you want to know if we have the books and whatnot scanned in a computer, the answer is no."

The three clones look between each other and start to walk to the door. Delphine watches them leave the library and is certain that their sudden interest in the library catalog has nothing to do with books.

_They are up to something!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for making you wait so long and then offer a little of a filler chapter, but I needed to do it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't want to make you wait for so long.... soooo very sorry about that... Hope you can forgive me

Delphine is looking out the window of her office, chair turned all the way back to the desk. It's one of those lovely spring days, the sun shining reflecting in the Seine, the sky bright blue, not a trace of a cloud, outside the air is warm, but not impossibly hot. She assumes this is the type of day that makes people believe there's nothing like fall in love in Paris. A postcard picture in front of her.

Usually it doesn't take much more than this to make Delphine's mood improve. Not today though. Even if her meeting with the clones wasn't as hard as she initially anticipated, she wouldn't necessarily call it a success. Cosima was never confrontational, she was actually cordial most of the times, almost friendly. Despite that it didn't fail to feel like coldness to Delphine. She knows she's being selfish, greedy even. It's a lot more than she was expecting from Cosima after the way she left things.

Perhaps, in a darker place inside her, she was hoping Cosima would be angry at her, show her how it hurt to be left in the middle of the night. It is the blonde's experience that, when that happens, it means there's some sort of feelings left. But not this. When someone behaves like the cocky clone did the entire morning it's a sign that there's no feelings left, for the simple reason that there were never feelings to begin with.

This realization disturbs Delphine immensely. For weeks after she returned to Paris, the French tormented herself about the childish way she dealt with what happened - escaping in the middle of the night, too much of a coward to face the consequences of her actions. Although she tried to convince herself that it was the least painful way to solve that situation, Delphine knows that's not entirely true. She could've tried to explain her circumstances to Cosima, make her understand her side of things. Maybe they could've left things in a positive note, but instead Delphine decided to, unilaterally, burn the bridge between them. In spite of being somewhat impulsive, Cosima seems like a reasonable person; like Delphine, she's a woman of science after all, she would be able to grasp the concept behind the doctor's decision.

All that doesn't matter now, not anymore. Delphine should've done it before, she knows it. Had she told Cosima what was really going on, maybe the clone would've understand and perhaps it would have made no difference. There was a moment she almost shared with Cosima her situation, but the fear of a negative reply froze her vocal chords and at the time Delphine didn't want to face the possibility of the cheeky young woman deny her advances on account of something that, in reality, she didn't have to know. At least that's what she tells herself every time her mind starts to condemn her for the way she acted.

Delphine needs to think like that, she needs to justify it somehow, even if it through some lame excuse, or else she won't be able to move on with her life. And that's even more scary. The recognition that she needs to find pretexts for the way she acted, unsettles her. She never needed it before, not once. In her previous encounters it was easy to let go, when she returned home everything that happened between her and whoever was left behind - never to be revisited again. The blonde doesn't want to dig deeper in her mind to find an explanation to why it is happening now. The answer would never please her and would serve no purpose: Cosima will leave soon enough and she can go back to ignore what's going on inside her mind for a very long time, until it subsides or disappears entirely.

A knock on the door brings her back from the realm of possibilities to the reality of her current situation. Which involves her spinning on her chair and collect the sandwich wrapper and carton of juice she has on her desk, the spoils of her lunch eaten in her office. The top scientists of the institute had a lunch scheduled with the clones, to which she was, very politely, not invited. After her trip to the States, she was also asked to step back a bit from everything involving Cosima, again in a very polished manner.

Delphine can't say she is surprised, in fact, if she was in charge and that happened with one of her subordinates, she's sure she would've done the exact same thing. Her objectivity is gone and that is an essential element in this job. Although she is not absolutely positive that her relationship (if there's any at all) with Cosima wouldn't the an extra motivation in making sure she is doing everything she can, the truth is that emotions in this job do more bad than good. The eagerness to succeed at all costs could very well have the contrary effect.

"Entrez!" Delphine says once she made sure there's no crumbs on her person.

"Hi! May I?" It is not that Delphine was expecting anyone at all, but Cosima peeking her head through her office door is right at the bottom of her list.

"Yes... Uhmm... Of course." She says with a wave of her hand, not needing to remind the young woman to shut the door behind herself. "How did you find where my office is?" She then asked confused.

Cosima walks slowly to her desk, almost floating on her feet, an easiness set on her pleasant features. "I asked." She answers easily, as if that is the only logical explanation.

Delphine frowns her brow. "And they've told you... Just like that?"

"Weren't they supposed to?" Cosima goes around the table, unceremoniously ignoring the chairs destined to visits and sits herself on the large window sill, looking down at Delphine, not avoiding her stare.

"Not really." The French replies honestly, spinning in her chair to face her. "And I can't believe they let you walk around freely either."

The grin Cosima had the entire time since she entered her office turns into her trademark cocky smile. "Maybe DYAD decided to open all the doors for us."

"I know you are a lot of things, Cosima, but naive is not among them." Delphine says, watching the clone get up and turn around, looking outside the window and effectively dodging Delphine's observing gaze.

Cosima goes quiet for sometime, perfectly still. Her eyes focused on the view, the smile, which has graced her lips not too long ago, fading. She has a contemplative expression, something on her mind has rendered the usually chatty girl silent. The thought of asking what's wrong makes a brief stop in Delphine's mind before it gets quickly discarded. She has no idea in what terms they are on. It's true that Cosima has not shown any sort of anger directing towards her, but Delphine is not naive either. Just because the American has been, so far, polite, it doesn't mean she's not harboring colder feelings.

"Nice view." Cosima finally says, turning back to her prior position.

"Oui... You look good on it too." The words leave Delphine's mouth before she's thought them through.

The smile returns to Cosima's lips. "I do, don't I?" She sits more casually, crossing her ankles. "I thought you would be at the lunch." She comments.

"I was not invited." The doctor explains as calmly as she can, given the fact that what really happened was that she's now considered persona non grata in everything official that involves the clones.

Cosima's deep brown eyes narrow slightly. "Can't say that I'm surprised... Fucking your subject can have that effect."

The way she puts it so blankly catches Delphine off guard, she is not expecting Cosima to express it so flatly, like it's something she pays little importance to. The blonde's movements gain new tension, in her head alarms are sounding; she is not sure yet of what sort of threat it is, but it's definitely there.

"Yes it can." Delphine says instead, dismissing all the warning signs.

"Does that means you're no longer my doctor?" And just like that, the explosion that was announced is canceled. Cosima's tone is now one of concern, as if she's almost sorry with these news.

Delphine allows herself to relax a little. "Not officially, no."

"That's a shame..." Cosima moves away from the window and gets closer to Delphine, her voice dropping a few octaves. "I was looking forward to be examined by you again."

The French swallows visibly, a heat rising to her face. Cosima is so close that all Delphine needs to do is stretch her arm to grab the tattooed wrist and pull the clone to her.

She resists the urge, her fingers going white with the force she grips the arm of her chair to keep herself from reaching. "Somehow I find that hard to believe, you were positively the worst patient that I've ever had."

Cosima's tongue pokes between her teeth and she gives one final step, bumping her knees with Delphine's. "Well, I think you're lying..." And lowers her head. "I think you enjoyed it very much." Her lips next to the blonde's. "In fact, I know you did."

Delphine traps her lower lip with her teeth, the heat on her face no longer a light tingle, her brain screaming for her to close the distance, her blunt nails sinking in her armchair. "And how can you be so sure?" She teases, pulling her head back, wanting to see if Cosima will follow after her.

She won't, but her hand finds its way to the mass of blonde curls on the nape of Delphine's neck. "I still remember the way you screamed my name."

"That was not during the examination." The doctor tries to keep her charade, pretend that Cosima is not affecting her in all he right ways.

At this point there's nothing Delphine wants more than to close the gap between the two of them, but something is stopping her. A nagging voice in the back of her mind is telling her that something is not quite right with this picture. It all seems too easy, it looks like Cosima was too fast to accept what happened. Maybe she's wrong; maybe the hesitation comes from the fact that Delphine has been expecting such a bad reception back to Cosima's life that she can't find it in herself to believe Cosima's simple intentions.

The images of their morning together reach her mind. The constant questions, not from her but Sarah, while Cosima's eyes never stopped looking around, like she was looking for something specific. And now this: wanting to get back to how they left things, no questions asked. Yes, Delphine is sure, there's something else going on.

Her hands loosen the grip she has on the chair, but Delphine resists the impulse to get up, afraid that her reaction will be interpreted as rejection, which is not the case; not entirely anyway. "What do you want, Cosima?" She asks quietly.

The American wiggles her brow. "I thought that was rather obvious."

Delphine is about to say that she doesn't believe her, that she suspects there's something else behind Cosima's aggressive advances. She doesn't want to make things more complicated than they already are. But as soon as Cosima forces the contact between their lips her mind goes blank from all those considerations and all the French is able to concentrated on is the softness of the lips that the rough kiss brings with it.

She does get up, but not to keep a safe distance, since her hands' hard grip go to the brunette's waist, pushing her closer, so that all notion of space evaporates. Cosima pushes her head down, forcing their mouths to lock, her tongue invading Delphine, after only a few touches of lips. Delphine's core set on fire, reaching the boiling point too fast. Taking the advantage of her longer frame the blonde makes Cosima give a few steps back, until she is again against the window sill, her own tongue matching the younger woman's in strength. She can feel Cosima's hands, moving from her head, hard and demanding along her back, only stopping once they are on her ass, grabbing with purpose. Delphine groans, pressing her body even more to Cosima's. Her hands leave and go up, until she tangles them in the dreadlocks.

Cosima's touch feels different from what she remembers, harder, rougher. Yet, the same connection she felt before is there; an energy pulsing over her, traveling her entire body, awakening her every nerve. It gives her life, a need of wanting more, of taking every single thing the other woman has to offer, and what she doesn't give voluntarily Delphine will strip it out of her.

The blonde moves her mouth lower, nibbling on the journey south, pulling Cosima's skin with her teeth, until they reach the clone's collarbone. Once there she sucks the soft flesh. But Cosima doesn't allow her to stay there for to long, one of her hands moves to her hair and forces her head back up, their teeth clashing together when their mouths find each other again.

The phone ringing startles both of them, but it doesn't stop Cosima from tugging them closer. Delphine needs to put a hand on the clone's shoulder to push her away; it doesn't take much, however the fact that Cosima didn't let go immediately manages to surprise her once more.

"I am supposed to be working." The doctor says, a ghost of a smile pushing the corner of her lips up.

She turns around to pick up the receiver. As she talks Cosima's staring at her, still by the window. When she sits back on her chair to see something on the computer, cradling the phone between her shoulder and her ear, Delphine senses Cosima move and soon she is on her field of vision, walking out the door without looking back.

Delphine doesn't see Cosima the rest of the day and she won't ask anyone that might know about the clones; it could create a situation that she wants to avoid completely. The only thing Delphine does the remaining of the day is pretend to work, shut in her office and thing about Cosima's visit. It doesn't escape the doctor that the situation that she so desperately wants to avoid, it's already happening.

When she arrives home Delphine's mind is still too busy thinking about what happened and looking for a way to put the puzzle pieces together. The way Cosima acted, so differently of what she initially assumed the clone is, gives her two routes: either this is the way Cosima really is and Delphine completely misjudge her; or there's a lot going on that she's still in dark about. Her mind leans heavily to the second possibility, but Delphine can't immediately discard the first theory either.

"That must have been an... Interesting day." Delphine jumps at the sound of Claire's voice.

"Oh... Sorry." She smiles and accepts the brush of lips. "Didn't hear you come in."

"Exactly my point." The other woman says from the kitchen, to where she has gone. When she returns, she has a glass of wine, matching Delphine. "So... Was it?"

"Huh?"

"Never mind... You don't have to answer." Claire takes a generous sip from the wine.

"What do you want for dinner?" Delphine asks, getting up from the couch she has been siting since she arrived home.

"Whatever you feel like doing is fine."

She's working on peeling some potatoes when Claire comes to the kitchen and places her now empty glass on the counter. She feels Claire's arms surround her waste from behind, then gentle lips reaching the shell of her ear.

"I know you want her again."


	4. Chapter 4

Delphine doesn't remember the last time she ever felt this tempted to miss work, maybe call in sick and stay home the whole day. Actually, she knows she never felt quite like this. Sure, there were those days when the comfort of the bed along with the low temperatures outside were a combination she fought to resist or those mornings after a particularly rough night when the mere notion of get out of bed pushes a deep, involuntarily, displeased groan from her throat.

But this morning is not the lure of the warm bed that keeps her from getting up, it isn't the desire to recover from a hard spent night either. It's something else entirely; something Delphine doesn't want to put in cohesive thoughts, let alone in words.

Claire's left a while ago, her job in the museum doesn't allow the flexibility of schedule Delphine enjoys, with her high position in DYAD. Although it doesn't happen often, since usually is the doctor that leaves first, while her girlfriend stays a little longer in bed. However, it is now 10 o'clock and Delphine gives another side glance at her phone, on top of the nightstand and considers calling to say she won't be in today, that if anything is in urgent need of her attention they can send it to her personal mailbox and she'll get back to them. After all, it wouldn't be unheard of, she knows many of her co-workers, who share the same level of responsibilities she does, do it. Besides, she hasn't called in sick ever, not since she started her collaboration with DYAD and is not unusual for Delphine to cut her vacations short because a new emergency exploded.

Surely they can understand.

Or they would, if it wasn't for the insignificant detail that everyone could see right through her lies. The fact that the first time she would miss work is when the clones are in town wouldn't go unnoticed and a new wave of rumours would start to spread in the institute like poison.

Delphine is not necessarily loved by her peers. Her "close relationship" with Marion or Leekie - depends on who's asked - doesn't grant her an invitation the her colleagues' kids' birthday parties. It's something that never really bothered her. She loves science, but that doesn't mean she likes the scientists she works with. They are her co-workers and that's it. Their lives outside the institute are completely independent from their personal ones.

So, even though Delphine is obviously aware she can do nothing to put a stop to the gossip around her personal life, she can minimize them. The last thing she needs is for people to start consider her unprofessional - or more unprofessional, again, depends on who's answering. With that in mind, Delphine makes her herself move out of bed and into the bathroom for a quick shower.

She makes her way, discreetly, to her office, the usual cup of black coffee in hand, nodding her good mornings to the few colleagues Delphine finds along the corridors. Once at her desk she's resolute to focus on her job, she has a big stack of lab analyses waiting her opinion and signature. Reading them more carefully than it's her habit, afraid the state of uneasiness she's been the last couple of days will cause her to commit mistakes and that's just unacceptable. Delphine is proud of her work, the projects she's involved are the ones that have been more successful in the French DYAD and she's determined to keep it that way. She's ambitious enough not to allow anyone get between herself and what she wants. This is something well known among her peers and probably the reason why every year more people apply to become members of her team. Delphine's personal life might be motive to more than a few gossips, but no one dares doubt her natural talent for the job or her capabilities to organize an efficient and prolific team.

The lunch hour comes and goes without Delphine realize it. When she starts to feel hungry is the middle of the afternoon and she makes a trip to the vending machine on her floor, taking that opportunity to restock her levels of caffeine and nicotine. After that, she gets back to her office and drowns back in her work. Delphine's eyes only get back to her watch when the movement in the halls outside her office are noisy enough to break her concentration. Five p.m. - most of the staff is leaving for the day.

This is the time of the day Delphine finds more productive. With everyone gone she knows she will not be interrupted and she usually stays at least one more hour, turning up the music that is constantly playing lowly on her speakers, Delphine flies through paperwork. Today she decides to do it again, probably an attempt to make up for her late start.

However, she's not given that possibility, since her phone's ring interrupts her.

"Oui?" She picks up, glancing at led visor of her desk phone noticing it's one of the lab's extension.

"Dr. Cormier, pourriez-vous venir s'il vous plait?" She recognizes the voice, although the name attached to it seems to be escaping her. It's not uncommon, he's not a member of her team and DYAD is a big institute.

She agrees without further questions, reaching for her labcoat and getting out of her office. Maybe something caught the other scientist's attention that couldn't wait. Everyone knows Delphine has the habit of staying a little late; it doesn't happen often, but sometimes she's called after hours to check on other projects. She walks calmly, taking the elevator down to the third floor, where the "mainstream" lab's are located. Not bothering to knock, Delphine swipes her employee's card and pushes the door open.

It's one of the small labs, usually used to collect samples and give them a first glance. Only two work tables and a desk with a computer and a microscope connected to it for high-resolution images. Under every table a single chair is casually prompt, this is not a room designed to spend a long time in. A white cupboard against a wall, with drawers and doors hold everything that's needed to extract simple samples. In fact this particular lab is no different from several in the building, so, obviously, is not the lab itself that makes Delphine stomach clench, but who's inside.

"What are you doing here?" Somehow her voice comes out much more demanding than she wanted, so Delphine clears her throat and tries to sound calmer, shoving her hands inside her pockets. "Never mind that… What am  _I_  doing here?" This she asks the young man in the room.

He stumbles on his own words, uncomfortable to be put in this position. "C'est que…" He glances at the clone. "She said…"

"I told him to call you." Cosima helps the awkward young scientist. "If I have to do this, I want you to be the one doing it." She finishes with a mischievous smirk.

"And what exactly is  _this_?" Delphine asks, her demeanor changing even without her wanting. The glitter in Cosima's eyes sending a familiar shiver along her body.

"Blood samples." The young man answers. "We already took it from Manning and Hendrix." At least he has the good sense not to mention them by the tag numbers.

"And they've agreed to that?" The blonde asks no one in particular, expressing her surprise.

Is Cosima who answers, shrugging, her face falling a bit. "You're getting it anyhow."

"Bien…" Delphine concedes. "You can go home if you want."

The words are not yet out of her mouth when the guy is out the door. The French's not sure if is due to the late hour or feeling like is just a third wheel.

Delphine waits until she hears the door's lock click before she looks more careful at Cosima. The cocky smile returns to the clone's face the moment they are alone, stepping away from the desk furthest from the door, Cosima slowly approaches Delphine, not bothered to hide her true intentions. The brunette's hands are already reaching to hold Delphine's waist, but the doctor stops the movement by holding Cosima's wrists, not forcefully but firmly.

"You're going to get me in trouble." Delphine says low, her eyes locked with the American's, the wicked sparkle steady on the blonde.

"God, I hope so." Cosima answers equally low, giving on last step to have her body entering Delphine's personal space.

"Cosima…" The doctor says warningly, releasing her wrists and walking more inside the lab.

Just like that, Delphine finds herself wound up tightly, Cosima's words causing her stomach to flip and coil without warming, the brunette's presence so close to her making her lose all sense of caution, the mischief displayed in Cosima's eyes and crooked smile bringing an ache Delphine didn't know until she met the cocky clone. Delphine had known instant attraction before, of course, Claire was the prime example of it, but this… With Cosima… She feels that it goes beyond physical attraction, it's an intrinsic connection that consumes deeper, pulls stronger than anything else she felt before. It's even scarier if she thinks about how little they know each other, how they've really only spend a few hours together their entire lives.

It takes a lot more than it should for Delphine to will her body to show controlled movements and, even then, she's sure the other woman senses her struggling for composure. Cosima probably knew from the start the effect she had on Delphine. And it was not that the French tried to hide it, in fact, she had made it abundantly clear not long after they met. The problem is that, at the time, Delphine misread the crave she had for Cosima; she had been sure that once she had a taste of the petite brunette, the hunger would be satiated. If only she knew how wrong she had been? Maybe she would have never act on it in the first place, her life would be easier. Had she known one night with Cosima was not nearly enough; that, in fact, the yearn never eased, it only grew. Had she known that, Delphine would have stayed away. This is not something she ever wanted.

"So you want me to take off my shirt?" Her head spins around from the drawer where she was taking what she needs, looking over her shoulder at Cosima, who has a knowing smile. "How long does it take to prep a blood collection? I thought you had a PhD? This should be routinely enough?"

With everything she needs in hand, Delphine turns around and pulls one chair closer to another by a desk, motioning for Cosima to take the seat in front of her. "You would be surprised how rare it is for me to be doing this." She says, putting on a fresh pair of gloves and watching Cosima take the chair. "And no, you don't need to remove your shirt." She smiles at the brunette. "Just roll up your sleeve."

The clone fakes a pout, but does as she's asked. "Advantages of being a big shot, huh? Can leave the dirty work for the servants."

Placing the tourniquet around Cosima's arm and cleaning the bend of the elbow, she waits for the vein to pop up. "You will know it soon enough, I think. Weren't you working on getting one of your own?"

"I'm getting there." Cosima answers before she winces as soon as the needle penetrates her skin.

Delphine chuckles softly but says nothing. They're quiet as the tube fills with Cosima's blood, once it's over the doctor releases the tourniquet and withdraws the needle, placing a gauze pad that she had ready on the puncture wound. Her eyes find Cosima's staring at her and before she has to ask, the brunette replaces the doctor's thumb with her own to apply pressure.

She gets up and gathers all that was used to put it in a biohazard bag and into the trash. Still Cosima says nothing and when Delphine's eyes go back to her, she finds the smaller woman looking thoughtfully at her arm, her finger still steady on the crook of the elbow.

Delphine swallows dry, the distance allowing her to think a bit clearer. "What is this really about, Cosima?" She asks. Cosima looks at her and starts to open her mouth. " _Don't_  lie to me!" Delphine firmly warns her.

At that Cosima raises an eyebrow. "Why would I need to lie to you?" She asks challengingly.

"Because I think you still see me as an enemy." Delphine answers honestly.

"But you're not." There's a hint of mockery in the clone's tone.

Delphine puffs out exasperated, moving closer to Cosima and forces her hand away from the elbow with a rough gesture to check to see if the bleed has stopped. Satisfied by what she sees, she hastily places a band-aid on it and steps back.

"You're bedside manners suck, Dr. Cormier." Cosima complains.

"So does your defiance." The blonde retortes flatly. "You don't hear me complaining about that."

"You want me to be more opened to you?" The American asks.

"I want you to tell me what is it that you're hiding!" Delphine has long let go of the idea that she could approach this more prudently. "I want you to tell me why did you ask for me to come over and why did you go to my office yesterday!"

Cosima gets up fast and with three quick steps she's inside Delphine's personal space once more. "See! That's the problem when you work with people like this." Her arm gesturing around the small lab, like it represents the entire DYAD. "You start to believe everyone has ulterior motives."

Delphine wishes she could believe in Cosima, that the small brunette's intentions are truly that simple. She can't. Maybe it's because of what Cosima said or perhaps it's the tone she used to say it,  _still_  with an edge to it that goes further than just being annoyed by Delphine's words.

"Is it really that elementary?" The French asks, this time being her the one that closes the distance between them with one single step.

Cosima nods slowly, her tongue rolling over her upper lip, as if preparing for the kiss that will inevitably follow. "Is it so hard for you to believe that?" She inquires in a low voice, all the initial bravado returning to her.

Delphine places her hands on both sides of her face and pushes her up, their lips only a breath apart now, and she whispers. "I have a girlfriend."


	5. Chapter 5

Delphine feels Cosima's jaw clench under the palms of her hands at the sound of her words, her eyes lose the cocky glow and become hard. The clone gives one small step back and the blonde lets her hands fall along her sides, easily releasing her hold.

"I… I'm sorry, I didn't know." Cosima mumbles under her breath.

Watching her closely, Delphine slowly shakes her head. "No, you didn't. How could you?" She says, waiting to see the other woman's reaction. "I never told you."

"Of course. Well… You totally didn't have to tell me… hmm… Obvs…" The American's careful with what she's saying, her hands waving about as Cosima is the one finding excuses for Delphine to keep such information to herself. "It's like… your life. I get it!"

 _Cosima's trying too hard_ , like she's afraid to express her real thoughts. Delphine's suspicions only grow at that, she spent little time with the clone, but it doesn't take much to know that this is not how Cosima would normally react to such news. The doctor remembers how  _passionately_  Cosima reacted when they've met and Delphine did not immediately tell her who she was; how the brunette was so vocal about expressing her distaste for Delphine's involvement in the clone's project. Now, this… this is out of character, Cosima is being too… controlled, for the lack of a better word.

Not for a moment the french woman believes that the explanation for this is easy. Cosima didn't lose her fire, she hasn't suddenly taken on yoga to appease her raging mind. No, Cosima is trying too hard to be on Delphine's good side, which is really weird - the doctor was obviously under the impression that it would have to be the other way around. She was the one who would have to work to mend whatever she had with Cosima. It is the logical path, after all.

Delphine doesn't know the reason for Cosima to be acting like this, but she suspects it's the same why she  _and_  the other clones are being so cooperative. It is also, most likely the same reason behind the constant questions during the tour to the facilities.

She observes Cosima, who instead of leaving has only turned her back to Delphine, still lingering. Maybe Delphine ought to do something that will create an emotional response - not the restrained kind the doctor believes Cosima's be giving her so far, but a honest one.

Delphine approaches Cosima from behind, her arms wrap the smaller woman's waist, who's breath suddenly picks up at the contact, but doesn't pull away. When the blonde's lips go to the base of Cosima neck, she stretches it, allowing more room for Delphine. Not feeling any resistance against her touch, Delphine pushes forward, pressing their bodies together.

"But you know what?" Delphine says in an enticing voice, as her teeth give a small bite on Cosima's ear. The clone hums, her body leaning back, melting with Delphine's, who groans lowly feeling the warmth against her skin. "I bet I can find some time to spend with you."

The noise coming from Cosima sounds remarkably like a purr. "Is that so?" Her hand going to Delphine's curls and tugging her closer.

The European's hands found their way under Cosima's shirt, but she holds the impulse to travel north - that's not her goal. Besides, if she lets herself getting too involved in this, she might not be able to stop and the purpose of this little display gets lost somewhere in the need of touching the geeky clone. So Delphine's hands remain on safe ground, the lightness of her fingertips spreading goosebumps on Cosima's stomach.

"Mmhmm…" Delphine says while resisting the urge to stop talking and just leave it at that. "You're only staying for a few days. I think we owe ourselves a repeat performance, don't you?"

Finally Cosima turns around to face Delphine, but doesn't move away from the taller woman's embrace. "You want that?" She asks, her eyes steady on Delphine, but her eyebrow is raised, more surprised than anything else by the doctor's words.

"Isn't that what  _you_  want? Or did I misread what you were saying?" Delphine pushes deeper. At the same time her hands, now in Cosima's lower back, move lower, still light, but with intention on the brunette's ass. "No one needs to know…", she whispers in the clone's ear, "this will stay between you and me."

That is the moment Cosima breaks, her hands going to Delphine's shoulders to gain some distance. "You want to fuck me in secret? Is that it!?" Her words lashing out as she steps further away.

The blonde casually rests her lower back on the table behind her, crossing her ankles and her arms over chest, maintaining an easygoing expression. "I don't see any other way." She says in a nonchalant tone. "Like I said: you're leaving soon and I have a girlfriend. More than what I'm proposing is…"

"So… you would be alright with that?" Cosima's speech is growing louder, the movement of her hands becoming more frenetic. "We would spend a night together and then you would get back to your girlfriend like nothing happened?"

"Oui, that's correct!" Delphine nods, her face still not showing any sign of what's really going on in her mind as she prepares to give the final blow. "It's not like it never happened before."

After a few seconds of hesitation, a bitter smile appears on the clone's lips. "And here I was thinking I was special." She scoffs and gets her coat from the rack next to the door. "I'm so stupid…", she goes on, seemly talking to herself, as she dresses her coat, "I knew it, I fucking knew it."

Delphine watches her fighting to get her coat over her shoulders, Cosima's too rattled, her movements are too tense to be able to do it without fumbling.

"And  _still_  you were the one who came to me." The French reminds her with a steady voice. "You were the one who pushed us into this situation."

"I didn't know you have a girlfriend!" Cosima's head whips around to find Delphine's stare unphased.

"Would it make any difference?" Delphine asks, giving a few steps in the clone's direction with ease; she's still to lose her cold exterior. "In the end, wouldn't the result be same? Wouldn't we spend the night together and then you would go?"

Cosima's eyes can't seem to focus on only one thing, she's letting the emotions get the best of her. That's the only explanation for her not to have yet noticed that Delphine is way too calm taking in consideration the conversation they're having. Had she taken the time to assess what's going on around her, Cosima would notice the blonde's lips perk up, as if she knows something that Cosima doesn't - which she does. Delphine's satisfied that at least she has gotten an honest response from Cosima. Yes, this is what she was expecting all along and, not only that, she's convinced this would be the way Cosima would react from the beginning under normal circumstances. But the European suspects there's nothing normal about this. The moment Cosima and the other clones arrived at the old continent they've been having their own agenda.

Delphine doesn't know yet what it is, but she's convinced that Cosima being on her good graces is part of it. And that brings her to another realization: she's been used. Cosima intentions with her are far from being as simple as the American claims.

Cosima's eyes only focus on Delphine when the blonde is standing right in front of her, adjusting the coat on the clumsy woman's shoulders, allowing her thumb to brush the clone's neck. Cosima shivers, but doesn't pull back and for a moment Delphine believes she's frozen again, like it happened many months ago when the French first showed Cosima her true colors. As she notices Cosima swallow dry, Delphine's tongue briefly rolls over her own bottom lip before her teeth trapping it.

Delphine should let her go, she won't get anything else from Cosima the way things are now, the brunette is too shaken to share anything useful for the doctor to understand what's really going on. Still, some invisible force guides her forward, closing the gap between the two women. Cosima gives one step backwards and with a low thud has her back against the door, but Delphine doesn't even have time to think this is a retreat movement. Cosima's hands find the collar of her lab coat and pull the blonde, her chin already lifted to receive Delphine's lips with her own.

Any idea of mildness flies out of Delphine's mind the moment their lips touch, her hands move down to the smaller woman's neck, forcing her head even more upwards. Cosima responds with equal strength, the grip on the lab coat tightens, their tongues fervently contest dominance over one another. Neither woman interested in ease the demanding kiss.

The doctor presses harder when she feels Cosima's left leg hook to her thigh, forcing them closer. Delphine's left hand moving down, curling around the brunette's knee and firmly traveling up, her hips thrusting forward, effectively pinning Cosima against the door. The clone's tight grip leaving the lab coat and choosing to untug the blue silk shirt from Delphine's black trousers, fingers quickly finding their way to warm, soft skin on the lean woman's lower back.

Delphine's own hands don't know where they want to land, wishing they could touch every inch of the body pressing against hers.

Lips move lower, spreading softer kisses along Cosima's collarbone. "Tu m'as manquée..." The whisper leaves her mouth before she's able to process it, but somewhere in her foggy mind there's the notion that the American can't understand her confession.

Either way, Cosima doesn't falter on her actions and one of her hands is pulling at the blonde curls, her teeth tugging Delphine's lip the moment she can reach it. The doctor's hand slips along Cosima's leg, moving to her inner thigh and pressing deeper.

"Fuck, Delphine..." Cosima gasps, her hips thrusting forward to meet the tentative touch.

It's all the encouragement the blonde needs to move both her hands to the clasp of Cosima's belt, with little grace trying to yank it open. However, before she can finish her endeavor, the clone releases her grip and quickly unwraps her body from the Delphine's.

"You would be cheating!" Cosima manages to say between heavy breaths. "That's the difference." She turns around and tries to get the door open, when she fails to do so, the brunette turns back around and, without saying another word, motions for Delphine to open the door.

The European is still fighting to get some much needed air into her lungs, taking hungry breaths, she feels the blood rushing everywhere, her heart rate must be sky high. But what really bothers her is the fact that she's allowed it to escalate beyond her control. It shouldn't happen, Delphine is not supposed to, yet again, let Cosima get to her this way, especially when she knows the clone is, not only hiding something, but using her to get to whatever it is she wants.

"It would not be cheating... Not really." Delphine says, giving Cosima some space, but not making any movement to open the door. "Claire knows about you... Uhmm... About us."

Cosima's eyes squint barely. "So what? You think your girlfriend's gonna give you a free pass because we have history?" She chuckles, but the amusement is not there. "Well... I don't know how new you are to this relationship thing, but I assure you that's not how things..."

Delphine raises her hand. "You're not understanding what I'm saying."

This time the laugh that comes from Cosima is deeper, less tense. "Why don't you enlighten me then?"

"It would be impossible to be... uhmm... cheating, as you said." Delphine is being careful with what she says and Cosima can sense her measuring her words, a brow raised, eyeing the doctor closely. "Cosima, from the start of our relationship, Claire has known that I need... hmm... recreation outside our relationship - we both do. You're not the first one I've been with outside of her."

The clone's gaze quickly changes from curious to disbelief. "You  _have_ been with?!" She says loud, her hands high up in a halt sign. "You mean... When you were in LA..."

Delphine knows she walking into volatile territory, but still she continues. "We've been together for almost eight years." She explains nodding. "We're french; we enjoy lovers."

Cosima looks like she's just been punched in the gut. "Oh my fucking..." She breaths out. "Are you fucking kidding me?!" The American almost shouts when she finds her voice. "Okay... I'm leaving!" And she turns to the door, but not being more successful in opening it this time around.

Sensing the danger Delphine approaches her carefully and reaches for Cosima's elbow. "If you let me explain." She doesn't want to plea, but the blonde knows that her voice has a tremble she can't control.

The clone is fast getting herself away from Delphine's reach. "I don't care for that." She says, her voice and posture rapidly turning aggressive. "I want to get out of this damn lab."

Knowing that she won't get anywhere with Cosima in this state, Delphine moves to open the door and barely has time to register the small woman hastily walking out.

 _I could've handle that a little bit better,_  she realizes a little bit too late.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, it has been quite some time… so very sorry
> 
> Also a reminder that this work is not beta, so you will find some errors.

Arriving home, Delphine all but throws her purse, brief and coat at the couch. Losing her clothes along the way to the bathroom where she takes her time on the shower, waiting for the knots in her shoulders to get a bit looser. Slightly more relaxed, she leaves the bathroom and moves to the bedroom, not surprised to see that the clothes she haphazardly left spread on the floor are now casually folded and on a chair near the bed.

Delphine pulls white sweatpants over her legs and a brown loose tank top over her torso, her blonde curls still wild and bit wet left free. She takes a deep breath, wishing her brain would quiet down and walks to the kitchen, where she knows Claire is, judging by the noise of metal clacking.

When she crosses the door Delphine knows Claire has noticed her; her hands stop mid-air in what she's doing, but doesn't turn around or says a word.

The doctor gets closer to her girlfriend and gently places a hand on the other woman's lower back. Claire's body shifts a little and she faces Delphine, offering a small smile. The blonde responds in these manner and, extending her neck, plants a soft kiss on awaiting lips.

"What's for dinner?" Delphine asks, her voice low.

"Just a little something I managed to put together with what little we had left." Claire answers, getting back to work with easiness. "We need to go grocery shopping."

"I know." Delphine reaches for a glass on the top cabinet and starts to fill it with wine from the bottle that's opened and set on the counter, keeping herself close to Claire. "I haven't had much time for anything lately."

"Work keeps you busy; I know that." Her eyes never leaving what she's doing on the balcony. "Maybe when all this business with the clones it's over you can take a few days off.

"When are they leaving, anyway?" Claire adds casually.

"The day after tomorrow." The blonde answers, not wanting to acknowledge the struggle she endures to keep her voice steady.

"You better get to work, then." The other woman's voice remains the same lower tone and the fact that her stare never finds Delphine's makes it hard for the doctor to read the implication behind the words. "You don't have much time."

Delphine holds her breath and then takes a big sip from the wine glass to gain some time and calm herself. "What do you mean?" Her voice cracks either way and she gives a few short steps back.

"Cosima." And her girlfriend's voice maintains the softness. "Unless you've already…"

"It's more complicated than that." Delphine cuts in without thinking.

With deliberate calmness, Claire sets the knife she was using to cut some tomatoes on the counter and turns around. "That's exactly the problem, isn't it, Delphine?" Her light green eyes steady on wide open hazel ones. "This is not supposed to be complicated."

Despite the waver of her breathing, Delphine doesn't avoid her girlfriend's stare. "If you don't want me to be with Cosima, I won't." She states firmly.

"And it will make a difference what I want?"

"Of course it will." Delphine raises her voice just barely. "The last thing I want is to do something that it will make you uncomfortable."

Claire squints. "If that is the only thing that's keeping you from having sex with Cosima, you're doing it for the wrong reason."

"And what is the right reason?"

"I don't know…" Claire shrugs as she answers, picking up the knife and getting back to work. "Lust, want… That's what should pull you to Cosima, but if you're willing to work this hard to get her, then…"

"Then nothing!" Delphine stops her, moving fast to place both hands on her girlfriend's cheeks, so their eyes are fixed on one another.

"I know you, Delphine." Claire says with a sad smile. "If you want Cosima, you'll get her and nothing I can say will stop you."

The doctor lets her hands fall along her side, but keeps herself close to Claire. "You're talking like I have no self-control."

"I wouldn't say that, I would call you determined." Her hands go to Delphine's waist and pulls her closer. "Besides, if you want her that bad, who am I to keep you from getting her?"

Delphine scoffs a bit. "Uhmm… I don't know… My girlfriend?" She answers. Her lips getting closer to Claire's and her body leaning into the other woman's.

"Really?" A raised brow and a teasing voice returns to her, before her lips are gently received.

Later that night, Delphine remains wide awake, struggling to keep her body from tossing and turning, so not to awake her girlfriend sound asleep next to her. The blonde's mind wondering if Claire did, in fact, vetoed Cosima or not. And more importantly: if that was what happened, will it really make difference? And if Delphine is willing to put that in question, what exactly does it mean?

Delphine doesn't doubt that there's lust and want - as Claire had put it - between Cosima and herself. The way her body easily responds to Cosima and the way she feels it being returned to her in the same manner, with equal intensity by the cocky clone, leaves little room for misunderstandings. However, if there's more to it, Delphine has little conviction.

Truth is, there's not a whole lot Delphine's in the disposition to sacrifice in order to be with Cosima. She considers to have her life all figured out: a nice job, with strong possibilities of improvement; her life organized with Claire, which gives her the freedom she believes she can't live without.

Cosima herself doesn't seem to want much more from the French than what they have now - whatever that is. Also, the knowledge that there's definitely something happening on the backstage is a constant in the doctor's mind.

Finding out about Delphine's… peculiar arrangement crumbled the clone's pretense and provoked her to have an honest reaction to Delphine's presence. If Cosima was in the mood to put aside the reservations she had about Delphine after what happened in LA, it's because she has strong reasons to do it. And whatever those are Delphine's absolutely sure the rest of the clones are on it as well.

What remains to be uncovered is what exactly are they after.

Not knowing annoys the doctor, not only because it's something that's in her nature - Delphine hates to be left in the dark -, but also, and more importantly, because it seems like the clones believe she has information regarding what they are looking for and choose to try to obtain it by leery means, instead of asking her. Again!

The same thing happened the first time they were together and Delphine clearly stated that if they needed something they should've just asked. If the first time is forgivable, understandable even, since they really didn't know each other, now is a different issue. Cosima and the other clones still see her as an enemy and believe that going behind her back is the only way they can obtain information from her.

Just before sleep gets hold of her, Delphine decides to give them one last chance. The next day she'll talk with Sarah and give them an opportunity to come clean. Not Cosima; never Cosima. Not only things are not clear with Claire, but also because Delphine refuses to be used again like that.

Cosima should've known better that that!

The next morning, for the first time since the clones arrival, Delphine manages to keep her usual routines in place. Getting up before Claire, she gets dressed and leaves after a soft kiss on her still awaking girlfriend's forehead. The blonde gets on the metro at the same time she always does, stops on the little pastry close to the DYAD building and gets her breakfast of freshly baked croissant and a large cup of black coffee, which she has already sitting on her chair in her office, while getting her emails in order.

Before she starts her daily rounds on the labs working the projects under her care, Delphine stops in front of her assistant's desk, just outside her office.

"Do you know if the clones have arrived yet?" She asks.

Claude takes his eyes from the computer screen and looks at her bewildered. "I have no idea, Dr. Cormier."

She knows her question is misplaced; her assistant - along with the entire French branch of DYAD - is aware of the restrictions she has on the clones' project, as well as the reason for them. However, Delphine chooses to play it loosely and offers no further explanation.

"Try to find when they do and have Ms. Manning see me whenever you can squeeze her in my schedule." She directs with a strong voice that doesn't invite any questions. "The sooner the better."

As a rule, her round through the labs don't take much of her time and it's a mere routine. Delphine's team is a well-oiled machine, everyone knows what they should be doing; they are precise and efficient, an exceptional reflex of the person running it. If there was any problem she would've known the moment she arrived at her office. But she makes an habit of checking on every project daily, more to let them know that she's there in case of any situation that requires her attention than to keep her troops in line. No one dares to defy her directives, aware that the consequences of such thing will be, most likely, getting thrown out of the project and never get invited to be part of her team.

Doing so Delphine aims to be respected, not feared. Even so, it's not uncommon for people to be, at the very least, nervous about giving her bad news. The doctor knows this, she's aware that people get… antsy about saying something like what her assistant is now telling her when she gets back to her office.

"It looks like the clones are not coming today." A flustered Claude informs her.

"And that's what you've been told or did you confirm it?" Delphine inquires with a serious semblante.

The young man clears his throat. "It's… hmm… it's in their schedule." He hands her a sheet of paper she hasn't seen before.

Delphine takes her time studying the paper.  _Friday: free day._  Her light hazel eyes travel from the paper to the man sitting at the desk, she raises her brow and quirks up a corner of her lips.

"I'm not supposed to see this?" She asks, but the answer is rather obvious and the only thing her assistant does is discreetly wink at her.

Another advantage about the way she commands her troops: it inspires loyalty.

She mumbles a thank you and goes in her office, where she takes her time considering her next step. Delphine's eyes glued on the schedule that gives her information she was not supposed to be privy to. She knew when the clones would arrive and leave, she also knew they were staying in a hotel close to the institute, in the city center - but that was about it. Now she has the details, including the flight they'll take Sunday, in the early afternoon. But more interesting, the hotel and rooms where they're staying.

In a split second decision Delphine picks up her phone with the intention to tell Claude to call the hotel and ask for Sarah, but soon the cogs in her mind start to work and she thinks twice about it. She can't use the company's phones to make the call and even her cellphone is out of the question: DYAD pays the bills of it and a call to the Hotel will stick out like a sore thumb in the bill. Although Delphine's not sure if they would check it, better be safe than sorry about that one; if she can avoid it, she will.

Glancing at her watch she notices the lunch hour approaching and decides to take the issue head-on. She walks a block from the DYAD and hails a cab, giving the driver the name of the Hotel. Hoping that the clones aren't out for lunch she nears to the front desk. Delphine knows it would be safer to call, but she really doesn't want to leave a paper trail. If they're going to find out about her visit, she's determined to at least make them work for it.

"Bonjour, I'm here to see Sarah Manning, I believe she's staying in room 1248." She says to the young clerk, remembering the information she shouldn't have access to.

"And who should I announce, Mademoiselle?"

"Delphine Cormier." She answers with some hesitance.

"Just a moment please." He says turning his attention to the computer and hitting a few keys before he picks up the phone.

The doctor turns around and scans the lobby. DYAD had saved no expenses in making sure the clones were well taken cared of; if this isn't the most expensive hotel in Paris, it is certainly on the top ten. Everywhere she looks Delphine sees elegantly dressed people, here and there a man with securities all around him. She's sure the clones are not exactly feeling at home in the high end hotel.

"Ms. Manning will be down in a moment." The clerk informs. "She has requested that you wait for her at the bar."

Delphine finds it curious, she was under the impression that she would have to work a little harder to get a one-on-one with the resilient clone. But after thanking the young man, starts to walk in the bar's direction.

They would've been able to go unnoticed, if they weren't moving so fast among people that can afford the luxury of having a calm weekday afternoon, but the hastily manner in which they cross the lobby is enough to draw the doctor's attention. At first she doesn't recognize the lean man, more because she isn't expecting to find him here than because she doesn't easily identifies him - Felix Dawkins presence in the punk clone's life is well documented in Sarah's files. Is the person Felix is shoving inside the elevator that Delphine is not able to see, but the clone's foster brother is well in her line of sight; at least until he disappears inside the same elevator.

Aware that it would be useless to try and follow them, especially when she's worked so hard to move as discreetly as possible about this, Delphine walks to the bar and chooses to sit at a table on the corner, in a way that she's facing the only entrance. While she waits for Sarah to arrive she orders a coffee and when she has been waiting for 10 minutes, Delphine starts to wonder if she should get something to eat, annoyed that she's losing her lunch hour waiting for the obstinate clone to grace the doctor with her glorious presence.

It's with a closed expression that Sarah enters the bar and with a few steps approaches the French.

"You sure is me you want to talk to?" Sarah says without any greetings.

Startled by the welcoming, Delphine starts to get up, but quickly stops herself and motions for the clone to take a seat in front of her. "Yes, I'm sure." She says, her eyes steady on Sarah, refusing to feel intimidated by her manners.

"Okay, because I know we're alike, but we don't have the same… proclivities." Sarah seems to enjoy trying to see how far the doctor will allow her to go.

"You are nothing alike." Delphine decides to take the bait. "You couldn't be any more different… all of you."

Her answer appears to please the Brit and she nods, smiling slightly. "Good."

"Good!" Delphine takes that as a brief truce and dives into what has brought her here, thinking Sarah is not the type of person that needs circumstantial conversation. "In fact, because you're not the same is exactly the reason I wanted to talk with you, specifically."

This seems to spike her interest. "Really?" Sarah's brow raises in curiosity.

"Cosima has been… difficult."

"Can't imagine why…" Sarah snorts.

"And I need a straight answer." The doctor continues, ignoring the clone's comment.

"To which question?"

"The reason why you're here." Delphine says it easily, giving a small shrug. "Why, after fighting us for so long, the three of you have decided to collaborate with us."

"Maybe we've realised is a losing battle." Sarah makes a signal to the waiter while she gives a well practiced answer. "Fighting against the all-powerful DYAD."

Delphine carefully eyes the clone as she orders a coffee. Despite what she said before and even if that is the truth, part of her can't understand how two people who are genetically the same, can be so very different. Where Cosima's moves are fluid and the smile is permanently on her lips, Sarah's expression is always the one of someone who's constantly resisting something, the few times her arms move around is with curt, fast movements.

"And you expect me to believe that?" The blonde asks when they're alone.

"Quite frankly Delphine, I don't give a fuck about whether you believe it or not." Sarah says with a fake smile.

Delphine narrows her eyes and decides to take a different approach. "What is your brother doing here?"

"Oh… what?" This catches Sarah off guard and she suddenly freezes.

"Felix!" Delphine says flatly. "I saw him getting in the elevator. And who's with him?"

"He wanted to see the City of Lights." Sarah explains weakly and the French knows that the clone's excuse doesn't even convince herself.

"Sarah… believe it or not, I want to help you." Delphine breaths out, the nervous tic of passing her hand through her curls surfacing. "But I can't do that if I don't know what you're after."

"Why do you want to help us, Delphine?" The brunette asks, leaning forward on the table. "What if what we want is to take down DYAD?" She adds in a low voice, just before the waiter arrives with her coffee.

"I don't think that's what you want." Delphine meets her challenging gaze and pauses until the waiter leaves. "I think it's something a lot more personal than that. Otherwise I don't think you'd bother.

"DYAD doesn't represent the danger it once did." The doctor continues, showing her game. "Ever since it came to public, the clones project is under heavy scrutiny. It has weakened. They're not the enemy, Sarah, not anymore."

The clone takes a long time to answer, now and then sipping her coffee. Delphine says nothing, but her eyes are fixed on the young woman in front of her, the internal conflict in Sarah's mind written on her face.

"Rachel Duncan!" Sarah says abruptly.

"Who?" Delphine asks confused.

"Oh please…" The Brit rolls her eyes and starts to get up.

"Hey, wait!" The blonde exclaims, raising herself and grabbing the clone by the wrist. "Should I know who that is?" She asks lower, aware that they've draw unwanted attention of a few patrons at the bar.

"You should know her face." Sarah whispers back, but the challenging tone remains. "It's exactly like mine."

"Another clone…" Delphine says low, a hand over her mouth, eyes wide open and sitting back down.

Sarah follows, the doctor's reaction making it obvious that this is new information. "You've never heard of her? Never read her name anywhere?" She asks. "I thought you were part of the project."

"Only partially…" Delphine explains, astonishment still coloring her expression. "I was not brought into it until it has come to DYAD's attention that some of you were showing symptoms of the lung disorder."

"Again… why should I believe you?"

"I'm an immunologist, Sarah." The doctor raises her hands and her eyes start to regain focus. "Until then only genetical engineers were fully aware of what was going on. Sure, there were other scientists involved, but they were left in the dark about the big picture."

"So, you've never heard of her?" Delphine's answer is to shake her head, so Sarah continues. "But you can find out about her."

Delphine presses her lips together and ponders for some time. "Well… it depends." She finally answers.

"I thought you wanted to help." The clone mocks, squinting.

"That's not what I mean. It's not that I don't want to help." Delphine says, annoyed that she has to prove herself to yet another clone - turns out, they do share some similarities. "It depends on what you want to know and whether I have or not the clearance to access that information."

"But you can at least try to look." Sarah's determined to get everything she can from the French.

"Not without raising suspicion."

"So… let me see if I got this right!" The clone says in a daring tone. "You want to help, as long as you can save your ass."

"Can you blame me for trying to protect myself?" Delphine's starting to let her anger take control of her mind. talking faster. "Wouldn't you do the same? Especially since you gave me no valid reason for me to risk my job."

"Do you really think I would ask you if it wasn't important?"

"I think you would if you thought I was the easiest way in." Delphine retortes, resting back on the chair and adopting a more relaxed posture. "But fine! I might be willing to see what I can find, as long as we do a little  _quid pro quo_."

Sarah snorts. "Sorry, don't speak French."

"It's Latin." The doctor narrows her eyes, but this time doesn't let the emotions take the best of her. "And I think you've had enough encounters with the authorities to be very familiar with the expression."

At this the clone opens a small smile and the tension on her shoulders eases visibly. "I guess I understand it."

"What do you mean?" Delphine asks when Sarah doesn't elaborate.

"Why Cosima likes you." The brunette explains with a shrug. "Why did you tell her?"

"Tell her what?" The blonde doesn't want to sound so defensive, but when the subject is Cosima she always finds herself lose footing.

"That you have a girlfriend." Sarah's expression becomes more serious. "The way I see it, Cosima didn't have to know. You could have your thing - whatever that is - and she would go. No harm no foul."

"And you think that would be correct?" Delphine asks, baffled by Sarah's light approach to the issue. "I shouldn't have been honest with her?"

"I just don't see what you accomplished with that." The Brit says, raising both her hands. "Especially since your girlfriend doesn't seem to have a problem with it."

"Cosima should know what she's getting herself into." Delphine says, trying to swallow her surprise about the extent of what Cosima has shared with Sarah.

"Why?" The clone shrugs again. "She'll be gone soon. You two won't see each other again for a long time, if ever."

Delphine remains quiet, knowing that Sarah's not wrong. But when the French told Cosima about her situation, she was trying to use it a way to get the cocky young woman to talk. Not that it did her any good.

"Unless…" Sarah continues to reveal what she's getting from the blonde's silence. "You want something else." When Delphine doesn't answer and keeps her head down, she starts to chuckle. "Oh man… you two are more alike than what you might think!

"Tell you what." The clone is the only one talking, since she seemed to have found a way to drain the thoughts from Delphine's mind. "You try to find out what you can about Rachel and I'll let you decide if you want to share it with us."

"What makes you think I'll be inclined to do so without you revealing why do you want it?" Delphine raises a brow.

"Who knows?" Sarah says, getting up and Delphine can see that the clone is convinced of the merits of her offer. "Maybe you  _really_  want to help us…"


	7. Chapter 7

Claude gives her a look when Delphine passes by him deep in thoughts and hardly mumbling a good afternoon. Her brain still struggling to process the information Sarah's given her.

Another clone.

It's true that Delphine wasn't what one would consider an invaluable member of the team that has dealt with the clone's project; at least until DYAD saw fit to call her expertise. However, that doesn't prevent her from being surprised about the existence of a clone without her knowledge. The doctor was under the impression that she had access to the identity of all of them once she was integrated in the project. More than that, it was something she thought the institute would see as a necessity.

Even if the clone's are genetically the same, there was always the possibility that different organisms could not respond the same way to treatments. Especially in the beginning, when all the factors had to be taken in account, like environment or even diet. The fact that the immunologist didn't have access to all the clone's is not only surprising, but it could also have had disastrous repercussions.

If what Sarah has told her is true and there is, indeed, another clone that Delphine never had information about, there must be a very strong reason for it. Whether it's a valid one or not, is something Delphine can't know until she starts to dig deeper. With that in mind, the first order of business is to confirm what the clone told her.

Moving her chair to the front of her computer, she logs in into her DYAD account. This time there's no way for her to be sure they can't find out what she's looking for. The only other possibility she envisions to do the search is to use another computer and log in with someone else's account. Of course that she could try to find out one of her co-worker's password, not that it would be easy, but to guarantee that this person would have, at least, the same level of clearance she has, makes it even more difficult. Not only that, there's also the strong possibility that she would put someone else in trouble and the blonde doesn't have it in her to make it so.

As she expected, nothing comes up when Delphine does a search of  _Rachel Duncan_ in the directory. Next she goes through every single document she has on the clone's project, hoping they had inadvertently left something for her to see. But the result is the same:  _nothing found._ The weird part is that in everything she has access to nothing seems redacted, there are no signs that something was censured.

By this the French deduces that one of three situations are possible. The first is that Sarah is lying to her, although Delphine doesn't see a reason for the clone to send her in a wild goose chase. If the clones didn't want to tell her what they were up to, they could just have said so and there was nothing Delphine could do.

If the first option would lead the doctor to believe that the clones were not being honest with her, the other two put DYAD in that same position. Because, if Sarah told her the truth, that leaves with either someone at DYAD has gone through a lot of work to keep this Rachel clone existence from her or - and that seems even more unbelievable - Rachel was left out of the paper. This is: not only they keep this clone from her, but from everyone else who was involved in the project. Rachel would be a ghost.

Delphine doesn't know why, but has a gut feeling that Sarah was telling her the truth and this mysterious clone exists. Maybe is because DYAD has such a poor track record when it comes to honesty. Although if Delphine thought about it thoroughly, the clone's suffer from the same problem: from the start they've been trying to use her to obtain information. However the French finds herself, once more, ignoring such facts in order to give them the benefit of the doubt.

At this point it really doesn't matter which of the cases Delphine is facing, since, as far as she can tell, the solution would always be the same, as much as she hates to admit it there's only one way to know. Aldous Leekie.

He's the only one who can provide her with answers. Even if, officially, he has remained in the company's structure, nowadays, Leekie is isolated from everything the Institute is working on. Being an employee only on paper, Delphine is sure the high hierarchies are just waiting for the attention to dissipate so they can let him go with as little waves as possible. However, once upon a time, Dr. Aldous Leekie was one of the most powerful men in DYAD and, if Rachel does exist, he would know. Who knows? Maybe it was his idea to keep this clone in the dark to begin with.

Either way, Delphine believes he's the only way in: not only he surely has information about it, Aldous Leekie is also, most likely, in the frame of mind to do something he would never do under normal circumstances, like reveal confidential information.

After checking one last time her email, making sure no one from her team has notified her of any emergency, Delphine logs off and gathers her things to leave. On her way home, she makes a few stops to buy some groceries, remembering the dismal conditions her food stocks were yesterday. It's with arms filled with bags that she enters home and finds Claire on the sofa, with the computer on her knees.

Claire starts to get up to help her girlfriend but Delphine quickly approaches her and gives her a slow kiss. "Don't get up." The doctor says gently when they part. "Dinner's on me tonight."

"Should I be worried?" Claire asks, the tone of her voice is light, but there's something in her stare that unsettles the other woman.

"What's that?" Delphine says, stopping by the kitchen door.

"Never mind…" Her girlfriend says, with a dismissive wave of hands.

Delphine goes to the kitchen but only to set her bags on the counter and place in the fridge what requires refrigeration. Once she's done, Delphine returns to the living room and gets close to Claire from behind.

"Can't I take care of you without you thinking I'm up to something?" The blonde asks, leaning over and wrapping her arms around Claire's neck.

Claire spins her head and seeks the doctor's lips. "That's not what I said." She comments low.

Delphine's hands move down and without pause, pull the shirt over her girlfriend's head. "I know, but that's what you meant."

Claire doesn't answer, but removes the computer from her knees, before pulling Delphine to her. Plans for a more elaborate dinner are left forgotten and they end up having a simple Greek salad that both of them prepared with the fresh produces Delphine brought home.

"Mind if I use your phone?" Delphine asks, already picking it up from the table it was on.

Claire stops putting the glasses on the dishwasher and looks to her. "What's wrong with yours?"

"Nothing." The blonde answers, searching on her contacts list for a number. "But I rather DYAD doesn't find out what I'm about to do."

The other woman rises her brow. "Which is…?"

"Calling Aldous." Delphine replies with a shrug.

"And how do you know DYAD isn't going to find out on his end?"

Delphine stops and looks back at her. "He's paranoid enough to have changed his number." She explains, punching said number on Claire's phone.

"Right… But you're not paranoid, he is." She says lowly and shaking her head, but not really giving it much attention. "How do you have that number, anyway?"

"I think he trusts me." Delphine gives her a little smile while bringing the phone to her ear.

"I think he still has hopes that you'll accept his advances." Claire says with a mocking smile.

Delphine looks sharply at her, but doesn't have time to say anything as Leekie picks up the phone and she hears a 'hello' in a hoarse voice.

"Aldous, hello." She says loud, her attention focusing on the other end of the call. "This is Delphine." She adds, remembering he can't recognize the number she's calling from.

"Ahhh... Delphine, how are you?" His voice seems to pick up.

The French clears her voice. "Fine, thank you. And you?"

"I've had better days, as you well know." He laughs throaty. "Behind relegated to the sidelines is no fun."

"Oui… I can't begin to imagine." Delphine says in a soft voice. It's a good idea to remain on Leekie's good side, especially if she pretends to obtain the information she wants. "It's unacceptable what they're doing to you, after everything you've sacrificed for DYAD." The corner of her eyes catches a glance of Claire rolling her eyes, telling her that what she's trying is obvious for everyone to see.

But what her girlfriend doesn't know and that Delphine is keenly aware of is that in his ego lays Aldous Leekie greatest weakness. In fact, the doctor is absolutely certain that if it wasn't for the man's inflated ego, he would still be one of the leading names in genetic engineering. Also, it is what she intends to explore in order to get him to talk.

"A bunch of ungrateful bastards, is what they are." Leekie's voice is getting louder, proving her that the ploy is working. "If it wasn't for me that company would've disappear without a trace a long time ago. And this is how they repay me?!" He's speaking too fast, obviously getting emotional.

The blonde smiles wickedly, the satisfaction of a plan coming together. "So… You have no knowledge whatsoever of what's going on in DYAD right now?" She asks and the silence that follows answers her question. "For instance, you don't know that as we speak some of the clones are in Paris?" That is as much information as she's willing to share with him at this point; at least until Leekie offers her his help.

But the man remains quiet and for a brief moment Delphine fears that she has talked too much. "Dr. Leekie?" She calls.

"No… I had no idea." His voice low, clearly caught off guard. "What are they doing there?"

"Officially? Visiting the facilities." Delphine answers, surprised by the man's cautious reaction. "They were also asked to do some tests."

"And what did those tests consist on?" He asks, the calmness with which he speaks starting to make Delphine unnerved.

She shakes her head and sits on the couch, Claire's stare going to her, sensing the tension growing in the other woman's voice. "I have no way of knowing that." Delphine admits. "As you know I was…  _asked_  to step away from everything that involves the clones."

"Then how do you know about the tests?" Leekie asks confused.

The blonde stops to think. She shouldn't, she was not supposed to. It was Cosima's request to be Delphine the one to do it that lead her to have such knowledge. It never crossed her mind until now that there might be something more to it; she was under the impression that it was a regular checkup.

She bites her lip, trying to find a way to get him to talk without revealing such fact, after realizing she's just taking too long, Delphine adopts Sarah's tactic. "Rachel Duncan." She says without preamble.

Leekie is the one silent for a long time now, then he asks with a whisper. "How do you know that name?"

"That's not important!" She dismisses him, the high state of alert Delphine is under no longer allowing her the coolness to stroke the man's ego. "What can you tell me about her?" She pushes. "Is she another clone? How come I've never heard of her?!"

"I… I can't…" He says almost inaudibly.

Delphine breaths out, tired of constantly being lied to, of people hiding things from her all the time, important things, things that she should have known from the begin. "I had to learn about it from Sarah!?"

"They know about her?" This time his voice is loud, alarmed.

"They do…" Delphine says nodding, even though he can't see it. "They're also asking questions…"

"They should stop!" The man says promptly.

"You tell them that!" She deadpans. "Aldous… they've asked me, but I'm sure that if I don't give them the answers they're looking for, they're brazen enough to ask… less friendly people."

Silence.

"You owe them!" Delphine raises her voice to give the last stroke. "If it wasn't for them, who knows what would've happened to you."

"I'll tell them face to face." He finally gives in, sounding defeated.

"That would be rather difficult, since even if you weren't forbidden to leave the US, you certainly won't be allowed to have any sort of personal contact with them." The French quickly says.

Leekie takes his time, but eventually speaks. "Do you think you can have all of them together tomorrow afternoon, your time?" He asks. "We can Skype."

"I can try." Delphine answers, but she's sure she can make it happen, given the eagerness Sarah has shown in knowing more.

It's not until she hangs up that Delphine notices she no longer has Claire's company, so she goes to the bedroom and finds her girlfriend getting dressed and preparing to go out.

"Where are you going?" She inquires, her eyes steady on the other woman.

"We! Out!" Claire says, moving to the front of the mirror to apply some make-up. "La Lumiere." She says mentioning a bar they usually go to.

"I have to go talk with Sarah." Delphine moves to place the phone on the vanity close to Claire.

"Can't you call her?"

"I rather talk with her in person." The doctor explains, close to the closet from where she picks one of the few plain jeans she owns. "But I can meet you there later, if it doesn't take too long." She adds, thinking it will be good let go of all the problems for a while.

Claire turns to face her girlfriend and approaches her. "I can't promise that I'll wait for you." She teases, placing her hands on the blonde's waist.

"I have the feeling it won't take too long to convince Sarah." Delphine assures her, pulling her face for an exploring kiss.

Twenty minutes later she reaches the Hotel and is pleased to see another young man at the desk. Delphine prefers to repeat herself than have someone noticing she's visited the clone twice in the same day.

"Good evening." She says with a smile. "I'm looking for Sarah Manning, she's staying in room 1248."

"I'm sorry Mademoiselle, but I'm afraid Ms. Manning has left moments ago."

Delphine's not happy to see that this type of information is so easily released, but at least she can take advantage of the clerk's inexperience. "And I assume Ms. Niehaus was with her?"

This time the young man hesitates, perhaps realizing he had said more than he should. "That's correct. They came to me to ask for a nice place to have a few drinks." He finally says after Delphine gave him a big smile and leaned over a few more inches on the counter.

"And where did you direct them?"  _Paris is big_ , she thinks to herself as she struggles to maintain her smile,  _many bars…_

The clerk clears his throat, the redness of his cheeks reaching alarming levels. "La Lumiere, Mademoiselle."


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no excuses for taking so long to update this... none whatsoever... I am terribly sorry though.

Delphine is sure that when Sarah and the others asked for a nice place to go, Le Lumiere was not the kind of _nice place_ they had in mind. The club is notorious for hosting private parties for the privileged, a luxury bar that's frequented by Paris elite and tourists that come to the city of lights with plenty of money in their pockets to spend. Although she can't really blame the hotel clerk, since this is exactly the type of place people who usually stay there are looking for. A misunderstanding that's perfectly acceptable.

As the taxi stops by the club, Delphine sighs lowly, watching the line at the door. She pays for the fare and steps out of the vehicle while searching again for her phone. The instant she knew where the clones were directed to, she texted Claire, but so far her girlfriend hadn't answer, probably didn't even notice the message waiting for her attention. Taking a closer look at the hopeful patrons waiting in line, the blonde doesn't find the distinct group and decides that there are two possible situations: either they were rejected at the gate or they're already inside. A selfish part of her prays for the first outcome.

While this is not the place the doctor likes the most for a relaxed night in the city, Claire is a big fan and they are regular customers. Which is why the bouncer doesn't look at her twice as she quickly makes her way to the entrance, the velvet rope fast rising to allow her passage. The pretentious white walls and crispy white tables come into view after she stops by the coat check, where Delphine leaves her long coat in exchange for a numbered chip.

There are three areas in the club. The first one, where she stands, is a lot like a regular bar, white tables spread across the brightly illuminated room; the double doors at the back lead to a dancing area, which, as any other dancing club, has low lights, with colorful brims flashing every few seconds. Finally the back room is the VIP area, where Delphine has only been allowed in the few private parties she was invited to, mostly DYAD's corporate events. The club is never too crowded, the tight requirements make sure of it. However, even if that wasn't the case, Delphine would never take too long to find the group she's looking for; Sarah and Felix's presence stick out like a sore thumb in the middle of the elegantly dressed remaining patrons, only Alison seems to belong.

The blonde maneuvers herself with skilled ease amongst the crowd, her eyes fixed on her destination, searching for the element who's obviously missing. "I can't believe they casually let you in," Delphine says the moment she's close to them.

Three sets of eyes fall on her, but unsurprisingly is Sarah who speaks. "Advantages of being a famous clone," her tone laced with the usual crudeness.

The doctor ignores it and forces a smile to her lips. "They've informed me at the hotel where you were," she says but her eyes continue to stubbornly sweep the floor, looking for a dreadlocked head.

"Yeah... they were very, _very_ helpful," Felix snorts.

"She's dancing!" Sarah abruptly says and when Delphine's eyes finally focus on the brit clone with a raised brow, Sarah's grin opens wider. "We weren't here even two minutes when she got some hot woman's attention." She's clearly pleased to disclose this information.

Delphine narrows her eyes, but manages her voice to remain steady as she nods. "Good... She should have some fun," she speaks with determination, not willing to shown any sort of weakness in front of the clone who seems decided to piss her off every chance she gets.

"Is that why you're here?" Alison asks in her high pitched voice. "Is DYAD that invested in making sure we have a good time?"

The doctor's eyes move to the half empty glass of white wine on the housewife's hands, wondering if she understood correctly Alison's not so subtle insinuation. She shakes her head, pushing aside those considerations; she has more important issues than to try to make sense of a slightly drunk clone.

"I was looking for you," her stare moves to Sarah, who weirdly, despite always trying to push her buttons, seems to be the most reasonable of the group. "I have some information about what we discussed earlier."

This gets the punk clone's attention and the look of contempt in her expression quickly transforms into curiosity. "Did you get what we need?"

"Not exactly, but I got in touch with someone who might," Delphine starts, but stops mid sentence when the in corner of her eye she finds the clone she was searching for. "Merde..." she curses under her breath the instant she recognizes the person who's escorting Cosima.

In truth, she's not that surprised, this is exactly the kind of thing Claire would do. Delphine knows her girlfriend didn't do it out of spite, nor is the purpose of it to tease her or play weird games. But Claire's curiosity is something not easily tamed, the problem is always to deal with the consequences of her actions.

Delphine observes the two women getting closer, not averting her gaze, but with the lower lip being roughly nibbled. Cosima's big smirk fast disappearing when she sees the doctor in the company of her _family_ and an angry expression taking its place, which Delphine can easily notice even if they're not that close yet, in contrast with Claire, whose smile doubles in size when her stare finds her girlfriend.

The two women step near them and Claire's arm quickly winds around Delphine's waist, pulling at the doctor, who's yet to recover, and brushing her lips on the blonde's cheek, to Cosima's obvious astonishment.

"You were right," Claire says with a grin, "she's absolutely adorable."

Delphine slowly swallows the uneasiness rushing to her throat, her eyes searching Cosima's for some sort of reaction. The clone remains a little confused, but the realization of what's going on is clearly making its way to her mind and the startled look is replaced by a bitter smile, but her eyes are blazing with anger. _This is bad, this is really bad!_

The doctor's assessment of the situation is that their already precarious relationship just made a turn for the worse, even if mere minutes ago that had seem impossible.

"What the Dickens is going on?" Alison's looking between the two french women.

"Looks like a two for the price of one," Cosima's words are like poison that freezes the blood in the blonde's veins.

Delphine feels her girlfriend's body tense beside her and the hand on her waist grips harder. This could end very badly; Claire's not one to let things like this pass by without a retort. She lacks the emotional distance that's always present in Delphine's rational mind.

"Oh, c'mon Cosima..." Claire's not disguising the slight hostility. "I really doubt you got to meet me as well as you did my girlfriend."

Cosima grins widely but the fire in her eyes becomes an uncontrolled inferno. "Nope… but the way you were grinding against me left me wondering if you're as good a lay as _your girlfriend._ "

"Oh snap!" Felix is the only one capable of breaking the awkward silence.

Claire would've advanced in the direction of the witty clone if Delphine hadn't place her hand on top of her girlfriend's the instant she felt it slip away from her waist, the other woman not moving more than a little step. The blonde takes her eyes off Cosima to sharply look at Claire, her head shaking just barely, discouraging any kind of heated exchange between the two women who seemed to have taken out their weapons. The doctor can't allow this to escalate, antagonize Cosima further is the last thing she wants. Her mind rationalizes that in doing so would put her in a difficult position with DYAD, but ignores the obvious fact that what she's prepared to divulge to the clones will accomplish that on its own.

Delphine is not an idiot; she's perfectly aware that the excuses she's constructing in her mind are as close to lies as she can get, but she needs them - desperately so - if she wants to keep some semblance of sanity in her life.

"Fucking ridiculous!" Cosima spits, quickly reaching for her bag and walking away.

Delphine follows her small form with her eyes and notices that the clone doesn't make a stop at the coat check, but steps outside, probably for some air. The blonde struggles with the instinct to go after her. The way Cosima is now will only add fuel to the already blazing flames. So, Delphine decides to give her some room, while at the same time succeeding in not leaving Claire's side, which would only provoke her girlfriend even more.

She refocused her attention to the strange crowd she's around, all eyes on her: Felix grins, Alison sips her wine to hide the reproving look and Claire's observing the people in the club, looking away from them, but at least her arm is still firmly around Delphine's waist. Sarah is the only one who makes no attempt to conceal the anger bubbling inside her. It's something that has slowly been built in the doctor's mind: the connection between Sarah and Cosima so much like the one between siblings. Sarah's tendency to protect Cosima is nothing short of an older sister looking out for the younger, even if they didn't grow up together, it's obvious that the punk clone doesn't like what's happening and, if it comes to that, will defend Cosima with a fierce determination. Delphine briefly wonders if Sarah acts like this with the rest of the clones, functioning like a barrier, protecting her _sisters_ from the attacks of outside. She's not sure why, but something tells Delphine that she does.

"Aldous Leekie," Delphine says to the group, redirecting the conversation to the actual reason she searched for them.

"What about him?" Sarah continues defiant, but the doctor could sense that she hit the right spot.

"I believe he has the information you've been looking for," Delphine avoids mentioning the mysterious clone's name.

"And what makes you think he's willing to share it with us?" Alison, who's clearly more practiced in keeping her feelings in check, asks with a somewhat detached voice.

"He has agreed to talk, but will only do it in your presence," the blonde explains, her eyes moving between the two clones in front of her. "So I've scheduled a conference call tomorrow after lunch on your behalf."

"You took upon yourself to works as our intermediary, is it?" The brit clone mocks with a raised brow.

Delphine breaths out, passing her hand over the waves of her hair, forcing herself to remain calm and not fall in the trap Sarah's rude tone as set up for her. "I could just as easily cancel it," she challenges. "He's just a call away."

"Whatch out! The puppy is showing her teeth!" Felix giggles, already well on his way to drunkenness, earning a swat on the back of his head from his sister and a scold. "Whatever... sort this shit out, sis," he carries on with the giggles as he pulls Alison by the wrist. "C'mon Ali, let's dance and leave these two to talk business."

The housewife doesn't put on a fight and easily accepts the invitation extended to her, allowing herself to be dragged across the room and pass the door that leads to the dance floor.

"Meet us at the hotel tomorrow," Sarah says, her stare moving from the other side of the room, where she was watching the other two leave and go to the scientist. "We'll hear what Dr. Leekie has to say."

Delphine nods in agreement, feeling her girlfriend shift uncomfortably next to her. "Will all of you be present?"

"I can't speak for Cosima," the clone's voice reacquires a sharp edge.

"I'm talking about Beth," Delphine deadpans and sees Sarah's stare waver, only confirming what she already suspected. "It was her, wasn't it? With Felix this morning..."

The small woman doesn't answer, but being caught by surprise by Delphine's words has her unprepared to convincingly deny the doctor's accusation. "Why would you keep away from us her presence here?" The French woman inquires, but doesn't really expects an answer.

" _Quid pro quo,_ " Sarah lets out with a smirk. "First we find out what Leekie knows."

Delphine gives another firm nod, she will take it for now. At least Sarah is not denying what now appears to be so obvious.

"Bien," Claire, who's been quietly observing the exchange between the two other women, says, tugging at the blonde's side. "Now that that's out of the way, we could have some fun."

Delphine looks at her and gives a small smile, painfully aware of the clone's presence, attentively watching their interaction.

"Fine!" Her girlfriend breathes out, with just a hint of annoyance. "Fix it! I don't care how, but do it!" Claire says, before she drops her arm from Delphine's waist and walks away, following the same path the other two elements of the group did not five minutes ago.

When she looks back at Sarah she's faced with a frowned brow and eyes piercing hers with such intensity that manages to make the doctor feel uncomfortable, the blonde unable to shake it, even as she's extremely averse to showing any sort of vulnerability in front of the brit clone.

"I would be lying if I said I understand this situation," Sarah says in her sharp tone, her eyes steady on Delphine, "but I assure you: if Cosima comes out of this hurt, I know who to turn to."

With that she leaves, the French unable to answer her due to the fast retreat, left with the reply stuck in her throat. From the somewhat larger group of people only she remains by the bar. Delphine doesn't think twice as she walks in the exit's direction, sure that if she bothers to do so only more questions will arise. The harsh breeze of the night reminds her that, like Cosima, she neglected to stop by the coat check, but makes no move to turn back and get it; she can endure a little cold. She looks around the garden that surrounds the club, populated near the door by patrons who stepped outside for a cigarette. Further away she sees a small figure, involved in a cloud of smoke that Delphine knows it has nothing to do with the bad habit she, too, is guilty of.

The blonde starts to walk in Cosima's direction, pulling a few deep breaths to steady herself. When she's close enough to capture the sent, her suspicions about the nature of the smoke is confirmed.

"I thought we'd discussed how bad that is for you," she announces herself with a small voice to avoid startle the other woman, and remains a few steps behind the clone.

"There are worse things, believe me," Cosima says without moving, apparently not surprised by Delphine's presence.

As the doctor watches her raising her hand to take another drag, she wonders if Cosima was counting on it, if she knew that, as soon as she was free, Delphine would seek her out. As she contemplates the meaning of this, the taller woman says nothing, her eyes remain on Cosima's small figure, still with her back turned and in regular intervals her hand moves up to bring the weed to her lips, but despite that her body continues tense.

Delphine feels like there's a wall between the two women, the clone refuses to acknowledge her more than what she finds strictly necessary. The doctor can't blame her, she knows that the way she dealt with Cosima was not the best, she should have tried a different approach; if only she had the clarity of mind to see it through, to be able to judge the situation clearly and be able to access all the alternatives she had. Delphine sighs, knowing all too well that these type of considerations are fruitless at this point and decides to move forward... literally. She gives a few tentative steps and since Cosima doesn't move, Delphine only stops when she's right next to the small woman, her upper arm gently brushing Cosima's shoulder in the process, but the clone stubbornly maintains her stare ahead, even if her body gives an almost unnoticeable shiver. Delphine takes a deep breath to keep her frustration at bay, her shoulders rise as the lungs fill with air that has been tainted by the burning herb.

Determined to get some sort of reaction from Cosima, the doctor moves her hand to reach for the weed between Cosima's fingers.

"Hey!" Caught by surprise, Cosima protests loud, her stare finally going to the blonde. "What do you think..."

The protests stop when she notices Delphine bring the smoke to her lips and take a deep drag, closing her eyes and let it fill her chest, trapping it there for a while before expelling a thick column of white smoke.

"What? You think you're the only one who needs it?" Delphine asks with a raised brow, handing the herb back to the younger woman, still looking at her with eyes wide open.

Cosima takes a few extra seconds to accept it, her brain apparently having a difficult time processing what's happening. Eventually a discreet smile appears on her lips. "Really?! After all the crap you gave me for smoking?" She comments, shaking her head.

"I'm not saying it isn't bad," Delphine reasons, watching her closely as she the tip of the joint lights up again.

"Well... it's certainly better than the lines I saw a few women sniffing in the bathroom," Cosima says casually, her body beginning to relax. "They didn't even bother to hide it. I suppose that's tolerated by the club's management, but God forbid if I light up in there." She finishes with her thumb aiming to their back, in the club's general direction.

Delphine grimaces at the words, but it's not shocked. Anyone who has been to this club is aware of what's going on inside and that's one of the many reasons she tries to stay away. Behind all the glamour there's a not so well hidden dark side that Delphine wants to avoid.

"Is this how your world looks like?" Cosima's question comes after a few long seconds of silence between them. "All about appearances. Pretend that you're out at night for some harmless fun, when in fact you're getting high in the club's bathroom. Have the perfect girlfriend as long as you're allowed to jump the fence every chance you get." Cosima's voice remains steady and she manages to keep it emotionless, but it's not good enough to fool the doctor.

Delphine breaths deeply and moves to stay in front of the clone, who dips her head, hiding her expression. "I don't partake in the... bathroom activities, if that's what you're implying," Delphine assures in a low voice, not really sure why she so desperately wants to justify herself to the younger woman. "And my relationship with Claire... well... it has always been like this. It's not like we're doing it for kicks... it's just who we are, how we are."

Cosima's eyes remain steady on the ground, but she's shaking her head to herself and Delphine believes she can hear a low chuckle coming from her.

"I know there was probably a better way to tell you than the one I chose, but would it really made any difference?" Delphine continues, encouraged by the fact that, at least, Cosima's not yelling back at her. "And I don't jump the fence, as you put it, at any chance I get. I only get involved with people who..." at this she stops, searching for the right words.

Probably sensing her hesitation the American raises her head, meeting her stare with a cocked eyebrow. "Who what?" She pushes. "Who turns you on? Who gives you a nice little challenge?"

"Who I can't resist!" The blonde blurts out. "Who triggers something inside me... I really don't know how to explain it."

The brunette scoffs and has a disbelief look on her face. "Shouldn't the person you're with be the one you can't resist?"

"It's more complicated than that, Cosima" Delphine says lowly.

"That's just it, isn't it?" Cosima steps closer, her eyes glued on Delphine. "Everything is complicated with you. How you accepted to work on a project that's far from legal; how your relationship works."

The blonde looks away from the small woman, hopelessly searching for a way to keep from getting swallowed by the warm brown eyes that are piercing into her soul.

"Cosima, I..." she tries, but doesn't really know what to say, how to make her understand that this was not something she looked for, something she chose.

Make Cosima see that it's just the way her life turned out to be and Delphine decided to accept it, to go along with it without offering any sort of resistance, not because she thought she didn't have it in her to fight it, but because she didn't want to.

"Don't you want something simple?" Cosima asks, her hands raising to the doctor's cheeks, cradling her face and forcing their eyes to lock. "Something uncomplicated, something that's just... is what it is. No footnotes."

Delphine begins to smile and then escalates to a light chuckle. "You think _we_ would be simple!?" She asks incredulous.

"Why not?" Cosima frowns her brows. "Because I'm a clone... Your _subject._ " She answers her own question roughly, her hands pulling back quickly.

Delphine holds her wrists and steps forward to prevent the little brunette from getting too far. "Cosima, that doesn't make you less human," she says her in a determined voice, with her eyes firmly set on Cosima. "But you know that would be a problem. You're not naive!"

Abruptly, Cosima tugs her hands free and quickly moves away from the blonde. "That didn't seem to bother you when you were fucking my brains out!" She says with anger in her eyes that succeeds in startling Delphine, who's left standing alone while watching the small form walk away from her and back inside the club.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I was kinda stuck on this story, trying to find a way to make it only 10 chapters but there's no way around it... It will take at least 3 more after this one. This one will only be centered on Cophine and the next one we'll get some more of the plot.   
> Thanks for reading!

It's with a heavy heart that Delphine moves inside the club, making a stop at the bar where she orders and immediately drowns a shot of tequila while she waits for the scotch she has also requested. Taking the large glass in her hands, she turns around and sees no one she knows; they're all probably in the next room, dancing their demons away. Delphine does, however, notices a man, around thirty years old and with a confident smile approach her.

"I have no idea how someone so gorgeous is all by herself," he offers in an alluring French, his face close enough to hers for Delphine to smell the alcohol in his breath.

She eyes him closely, taking in his figure, his strong jawline and short blonde hair make him a pleasant sight. His eyes are a mixture of light green and gray, full lips and broad shoulders are probably the main reason why the young man breathes confidence. Under normal circumstances, she would probably give him a chance to capture her interest, but today the circumstances are far from normal and she's not in the right frame of mind to spare him any sort of attention. Men like this take too much of her, they require too much work, convinced that she needs to constantly show how grateful she is for them to pick her up.

"That's because I'm not alone," Delphine answers in a tone that will be gentle on his fragile ego and steps away from the counter, walking to the double doors that leads to the dancefloor.

She's greeted by the expected loud music, bass dropping low and shaking her body. The never ending show of lights doesn't make it easier for her to see anything, especially coming from a brightly lit room, but as she moves around the dance floor her eyes start to adjust to the low lights. She would contemplate the reasons why Cosima's the first person her eyes lay on, but the shot of tequila along with the light buzz from the few drags of weed are starting to cloud her mind. Her body's beginning to relax, her limbs feel weightless, a comfortable warmth is starting to spread across her skin and gradually the loud music doesn't feel so aggressive, but it almost molds itself around her body. Meanwhile, her gaze doesn't leave the compact frame of Cosima's body and how it moves as if it's part of the music, the way it sways and circles creating another layer onto the deep bass beats. Unlike herself, Cosima seems to be in her natural environment, not that it surprises Delphine.

When she started to work on a cure for the lung condition at Leekie's request, she had no personal information on the subjects, it was supposed to be irrelevant. In a way, she was encouraged to focus on _what_ they were, not _who_. It wasn't until her former boss agreed to take her to the US that Delphine had access to the clone's personal files, defending that she should be able, at least, to tell them apart. Even just reading the reports of monitors who kept their distance, Delphine found herself feeling slightly captivated by the American clone: a social person - a _real_ person - who thrives in the company of others, whose files showed someone who's capable of achieving the perfect symbiosis between personal and professional life. Had it not been for the way she was _created_ , Cosima would become the perfect example of someone who had everything to live a happy life, surrounded by friends, which she made easily, and family. It doesn't escape the doctor that, in a way, she could also be responsible to steal that pleasure from the energetic woman.

And yet, the fact that there are an unusual amount of people in the world physically identical to Cosiam, she is her own person, even though the blonde is sure the same can be said about the other clones, to her, Cosima is more unique, she manages to distinguish herself in a different way, her personality is more singular than the others. It's becoming obvious to Delphine that she's not the only one who notices this; she's not the only one around who can't seem to take her eyes of the small brunette. A few men and women start to give the clone quick side glances the more she detaches herself from the world and gets involved in the music. Delphine's intoxicated mind takes notice of the rest of the strange group closely by; not close enough to get in each other's way, but not far either that they'd lose each other's sight.

Delphine's content to observe from a distance, had she been sober she'd probably cringe at the idea of spying the clone's life from afar, would, most likely, dwell for more than a few minutes of the level of creepiness she's reaching. But in her current state she simply doesn't care, leaning against a wall where she knows she'll never lose sight of Cosima, Delphine continues to give small sips on the scotch she's nursing and with unwelcome glares fends off anyone who tries to approach her. She supposes she's not feeling very social today, besides the crowd that surrounds her lacks the appeal when compared to the woman her eyes refuse to leave.

It's only when the blonde notices a man in his late twenties, with a boyish look, a messy mane of light brown hair, in a dress white shirt and pants getting gradually close to Cosima that she considers moving from her spot. Nibbling her lower lip, Delphine hesitates for a moment, unsure if her intervention will be well received or even if she's misreading the entire situation. However, when the man starts to make his intentions obvious, moving close to the small woman and inconspicuously entering Cosima's personal space, who seems not to notice the movements, Delphine decides that it's time to get on the move.

Drowning the rest of the amber liquid in her glass and leaving it abandoned on the narrow edge of the wall, the doctor approaches the man from behind and taps on his shoulder. The annoyed expression he has when turning changes upon seeing who's disturbing him as his stare glides appreciatively along Delphine's body, convinced, no doubt, that it was his good looks that attracted her attention.

"You're in my way," Delphine tells him with an hostile look.

"Pardon?" The man asks, confused.

With her patient in dangerously low levels, the blonde practically shoves his shoulder and when he gives a surprised step back, she occupies his position and doesn't bother to give him a second glance. She's in no mood to linger, her hands waste no time to move and hold Cosima's waist and pull her closer, feeling the startled breath the petite woman takes.

"Dude, what the fuck?!" Cosima's voice rises enough to be clearly heard and she wiggles herself from Delphine's grasp, turning around. "What do you want, Delphine?" She asks in an annoyed tone, her bloodshot eyes unfriendly towards the blonde.

The doctor can sense the anger in the other woman's features and even with her judgement somewhat clouded, she knows that she should thread carefully.

"I just want to dance with you," Delphine answers, lowering her head, but maintains the physical contact to a minimum, not wanting to push it too much.

Cosima raises her brow, showing surprise by the simple statement, her small figure had stopped the smooth movements of her dancing the instant she felt Delphine's hands on her, but she doesn't retreat or demonstrates any signs of craving space. This encourages Delphine to give a small step forward, just enough to move into Cosima's space and her hands move again to the clone's waist, just a light touch, waiting to see if her advances are rejected or welcomed.

Cosima shakes her head slowly, a couple of dreads that fall free from the knot on the back of her head balance slightly at the side of her face. "I really wish I could understand you, Delphine," she admits, rising her stare to the taller woman, her eyes and voice much softer than before and both her arms moving to rest on top of Delphine's shoulders.

"I really wish you could understand me too, Cosima," Delphine says with a little chuckle, her own arms tightening the embrace around Cosima's lower back and pulling their bodies closer.

There's not much to say after that. Delphine muses if the small brunette is feeling the weight of that realization as heavy as she is; if Cosima is as disturbed by the circumstances they find themselves in as she is. Is this something that will bother Cosima long after she leaves? Something that will keep her awake at night, the same way Delphine knows it will happen to her? Or is it something that Cosima will forget the moment she steps into the plane to head home and away from Delphine, returning to her _real_ life.

They sway gently on the dance floor, the movements of their bodies completely at odds with the music and the other people around them. Neither Delphine nor Cosima make any attempt to change the rhythm their in, both of them seem satisfied with the slow pace. The smaller woman pulls herself more into Delphine, who gladly receives the petite form pressing against her and the face buried in her collarbone, feeling a ragged breath licking her skin, enticing her senses and urging her own body to seek more. The doctor struggles to access the rational side of herself, to remember that no good could come out of this, not after everything; she knows that, now more than ever, if she pursues something more than this it will be for purely selfish reasons. And yet her body seems determined to ignore all these conjectures, even if Delphine is perfectly aware that the need to explore this deeper is born out of nothing more than the never ending quest for the forbidden fruit, after all, it's as old as civilization itself - the original sin.

As much as she considers herself a logical person, there are aspects of human nature that no amount of logic can supplant. This is probably the reason, if there's any at all, why her hands start to tug Cosima closer, feeling the small body melt into hers, not even a small hint of resistance from Cosima's side. The only thing she feels is the tender touch of lips rolling along her skin and the other woman's small gasp when her hands skim lower, her fingers, first tentatively and then, when the move isn't rejected, more deliberate, reaching Cosima's ass. The brunette's own hands roam with careless abandon the back of Delphine's neck, fingertips glide in silky touches the soft skin and sink further in the rings of her golden hair.

They manage to continue like that for a while, the passage of time being marked by the music still loud on the speakers, but molding into an everlasting background noise. Meanwhile, Cosima's lips continue their journey along her skin, pulling Delphine's head down with little effort, she can reach the base of the blonde woman's neck where she takes her time, seeking the pulse point and grazing it with the edge of her teeth, her tongue poking out for a taste. Delphine groans softly, her senses demanding more than simple teasing on the Cosima's part. She's starting to feel frustrated; there are too many people around them, when what she really wants is to take Cosima in private, enjoy the quirky petite woman while she still can. She wants to explore the body she's been missing for far too long without hurry or interruptions, without concerns about who's watching, without the urgency that the submission to her craves in this place would require. This is no way to savor someone like Cosima, in haste and with no way to appreciate what makes her so fascinating.

Delphine has half a mind to tell Cosima exactly that, to purpose to her that they should go elsewhere and leave all their problems behind them, at least for tonight. The way Cosima is right now the doctor knows she wouldn't face much of a fight, if any at all. But that's just it... It doesn't matter how much Delphine wants it, she could never do it; she couldn't take advantage of Cosima, who's at the very least slightly high and deal with the consequences of that action. Delphine can't bare the idea of how Cosima would react the next morning, waking up by her side and regret what had happened the night before - especially after the way she left things the first night they'd spend together.

And if Delphine had any doubts about the clone's condition, they evaporate when a hand leaves her hair and moves lower, smoothing along her skin and then to the top of her shirt, fingertips gently rolling over the naked skin of her upper torso, playing with the soft fabric, even going as far as releasing the top button before it dips to softly palm her breast. Without the filter that a sober mind provides, Cosima's inhibitions are down for the count, parading in front of her, right there for the taking.

Delphine allows herself a few moments to greedly cave into her desire. Her own senses crippled, she lowers her head under Cosima's pressure on the back of her neck and lets herself sink into the smaller woman, lets her senses be further dulled by her smell, buying her nose in Cosima's neck and by her taste, grazing her lips over tender flesh, small kisses laid along warm skin. The brunette easily responds to her motions, the caress on her breast awakens and gains energy, Cosima's mouth moves upwards and she gently nibbles Delphine's earlobe.

"I want you," Cosima breaths into her ear, just loud enough to send a shiver down the French woman's spine.

"Cosima..." Delphine groans in a warning tone, her hands loosening a bit the grasp she has on the smaller woman.

Cosima pushes herself a little away from the doctor and looks up, eyes darken by lust find Delphine's with a somewhat petulant gaze. "What?" Her voice much louder. "I thought this is what you wanted, wasn't it?"

Delphine shakes her head, in her heart a new tremble grows, aware that she has once more succumbed to poor judgement when it comes to Cosima. "Not like this..." is the only thing she can say before Cosima is completely moving away from her and walking with determined steps towards the door.

Not expecting such a sudden reaction, the doctor is caught off guard, standing in the middle of the dance floor observing the clone walk out. She blinks a few times and quickly follows Cosima's steps while, at the same time, rearranges her shirt, buttoning it and giving it a strong tug. She finds the brunette at the coat check and when she notices Delphine approaching, stubbornly looks away.

Giving a side glance at the woman returning Cosima's coat, she gets closer and places a hand on the small back of the other woman. "Please, try to understand," she urges, speaking next to Cosima's ear.

The American is not having it though and quickly steps away, dressing her coat rapidly. "I think we've established that I can't possibly understand you," she points out bitterly.

"You'll thank me tomorrow!" Delphine responds with certainty.

"Somehow I find that hard to believe," Cosima says without hesitation and immediately goes to the door.

Delphine sighs deeply before she turns back around to find the woman at the coat check with eyes planted on her. She clenches her jaw and gives the chip for her coat without saying a word, but with an expression that makes the clerk move promptly to get the coat. While she waits, Delphine reaches for the phone, still in her pocket and reads a text sent from Claire saying she went home and asking if she should expect her to return tonight. It's not unusual, not at all, but somehow this night the assumption doesn't sit well with Delphine, a twist in her stomach accompanies her as she walks outside and is received by a cold night.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should probably read this once more before posting but... what the hell... I plan to clean it up once I'm done.. so... I'm in a lazy mode.  
> This chapter is a bit plot heavy, but it's time to get to it. :D

She closes the front door quietly, the house is completely silent, all lights turned off and the only illumination is the one that is provided by the crescent moon filtered through the windows of the living room. Delphine goes to the bathroom and gets herself ready for bed with a quick shower. Under the bedroom shadows she can see Claire's body on the bed, turned to her side and lightly breathing in regular intervals.

"Is it done?" The other woman doesn't speak until Delphine is covering herself with the bedsheet.

Delphine breaths in deeply, closing her eyes for a few seconds, her sight adjusting to the dim room. "Non," she answers in a whispered voice.

Claire stirs a little under the covers, twisting her head in the blonde's direction. "Why not?" She asks in a slightly annoyed voice. "When I left you, the two of you seemed to be moving in the right direction."

"She was… not thinking clearly," Delphine says, putting an effort not to let the exasperation she's feeling being revealed in her words.

"Oh… I'm sorry to hear it," her girlfriend, on the other hand, makes no attempt to hide her annoyance.

"Claire… I've told you," Delphine says in a less argumentative way, sneaking closer to her and placing an arm around Claire's waist, pulling her, "if you don't want me to…"

"And I've already told you my opinion on the matter," the other woman responds, her body remains still whilst Delphine's hand moves under her shirt and reaching up, cupping her breast. "For whatever difference it makes."

The doctor smiles to herself when she starts to feel Claire's body responding, pressing back, pushing against her. Delphine's lips seek the long neck, her hand tugs the soft skin underneath and her own waist jerks forward. Her smile grows even larger when her hand skims lower, pass the elastic band of her girlfriend's loose, sleeping boxers and presses against her, the wetness already noticeable just with the tip of her fingers.

"Hmm… Delphine," Claire moans, her own hand moving over Delphine's and assist in a few strokes. "If you think I'm going to let you fuck me while your mind is with someone else, you have another thing coming." She says in a still soft voice, but quickly pulls both their hands away from her and moves her body out of Delphine's reach.

The doctor doesn't say anything, she knows it's useless. Instead she gets more comfortable to sleep; it's probably for the best, she needs to be fresh in the morning. Besides, she knows there's truth in Claire's words, Cosima remains in her mind, a distant memory, but still there; even if it's something she'll never admit aloud, it's impossible to lie to herself. Her body still aches with Cosima's memory and the way the American's touch so easily wakes up a hunger within her.

It should bother her; the way Cosima causes her body to react, like there's something more than physical between them, a connection that goes beyond what should be acceptable for simple sexual attraction. The only thing that's keeping her from exploring the depths of her feelings for the younger woman is the keen awareness that she won't have to deal with it much longer. Soon, Cosima will be gone, both their lives getting back to where they were before they met and making too many considerations about the extent of her feelings will, not only be unproductive, it is also potentially damaging. Faith as a way to make itself feel inescapable, even if Delphine wanted to, there's nothing she could do to change the path they are in; it will be like swimming upstream with the certainty of failure.

Despite all the logic she conjures, these thoughts are still keeping her awake until the wee hours of the morning and when her brain finally decides to give her some rest, Delphine can already see the rising sun's rays entering the bedroom through the slits of the window shutters. So it's with no surprise she wakes up late the next day, just in time to get a quick lunch and leave. What did surprised her though, was waking up to an empty house. It's not like Claire to get up and leave without saying a word and even more unusual is for Delphine to not wake up with the inevitable noise around the house. The alcohol and THC left in her system were probably responsible for her heavy sleep.

Fortunately, she doesn't have time to think about the meaning of Claire's actions, only to quickly get dressed in one of the two pairs of jeans she owns and a silky, merlot sleeveless shirt, a light gray blazer complete the ensemble and she moves out the door, her computer briefcase on one hand and her purse hanging from the other shoulder.

So to avoid the tourists who invade her hometown in a pleasant spring weekend, Delphine chooses to hail a cab and stays clear off the public transportation. Arriving at the hotel lobby, she has Felix waiting for her, who quickly approaches the tall woman, not using a single word he gestures her to follow him. For some strange reason, the doctor feels self-conscious during the ride up the elevator, her briefcase held by both her hands in front of her, her eyes, now and then, finding the young man's stare steady on the front steel doors. A weird need to check herself on the mirror at the back gets set aside as she's aware that such move wouldn't go unnoticed by the lean figure next to her, who remains quiet.

However, Delphine doesn't feel truly intimidated until she enters the room, when Felix opens the door and doesn't bother to wait for her before he steps into the large, perfectly decorated area. By the room's number she knows they're in Sarah's room; a suite that has a sitting area completely separated from the bedroom, two large white couches surrounding a long but low coffee table. Alison and, unsurprisingly, Beth are sat close to one another in one of the couches, while the other is occupied by Sarah, with her arms crossed over her chest and an unfriendly expression, frowning her brows with unwavering gaze in the blonde's direction. Delphine's eyes continue their journey along the space until they rest on Cosima's compact body, out in the balcony, leaning forward against the railing and facing the outside, shades of orange color her long and loose skirt, the lightness of the fabric swaying with the ease warm breeze, a simple black top and feet bare, the young woman seems unaware of the new arrival.

Realizing that she let her eyes linger for too long on the dreadlocked woman, Delphine makes her gaze refocus inside, subtly clearing her throat. "Good to see you again, Beth," she greets, looking at the former police officer.

"Dr. Cormier," Beth says with a small nod.

Delphine tries to answer with a little smile and a head nod of her own, but her attention continues to stubbornly get diverted to the woman in the balcony, whose body seems to become rigid, her back straightening visibly, but doesn't turn around.

"I heard you're willing to help us on our quest," Beth claims her attention.

"Oui," Delphine nods this time with more conviction. "Although it would be an easier achievement if I knew exactly what quest that is," she comments, keeping her tone neutral. By the blonde's observations it's easy to apprehend that she's the most reasonable of the group or, at least, seems to be the least combative.

"As we've discussed before, doctor, you'll know what's going on if you have something useful to us," Sarah takes back the lead and with it the tone of the conversation becomes more strain.

"I'm putting a whole lot on faith here, Sarah," Delphine's not interested in allowing the brit clone to push her around. So, instead of fighting her, the French woman gives a few steps into the room, making her shoulders relax as she sets the computer case on the table and removes her coat, draping it on the headrest of the sofa. "Like I told you, all I can do is give you access to someone who might help you; that is all." She explains while she starts the machine, typing her password when the screen asks for it. "The first time I've heard of Rachel was when you mentioned her."

"But Leekie knows about her?"

Cosima's voice startles her, not having noticed the other woman enter the room. She scrambles to regain her thoughts. "Oui, he definitely knows her," she answers after a deep breath, nodding her head a few times, fighting against the need to inspect the clone too intensively, forcing her mind to remain in the present and don't dwell on what happened the night before.

"What does he have to say about her?" Cosima asks, tilting her head a little in curiosity.

"To me? Nothing," Delphine answers without hesitation. "But he was not happy to hear that you know about her existence and asking questions."

"Figures..." Sarah snorts and roll her eyes.

The French woman looks at the brit and shakes her head. "Although Leekie has never been the pinnacle of honesty, this felt different," she comments to the entire room. "It was more than a need to keep things a secret," she pauses briefly, recalling the conversation she had with the man the day before. "I got the feeling he was almost... scared."

"Of Rachel?" Beth asks surprised.

Delphine looks directly at her with a blank stare, after a few moments she frowns her brows and shrugs a little. "Of something..."

"Ohhh... that's helpful," Sarah says with bitter irony.

"Sarah..." Cosima warns in a soft voice, shaking her head a few times, with her eyes on the fellow clone, in what appeared to be an attempt to stop her.

The punk clone puffs but lets it go. "Right..." she says calmer. "Let's see what Dr. Creepy has to say."

Once more, Delphine nods and has no other option than to sit next to Sarah, but keeps a safe distance.

"Wait!" Alison says fast, as if something just came to her mind. "I thought Leekie was still working with DYAD. Why would he help us?"

"Only on paper," the doctor clarifies, distracted with putting the call through, her eyes set on the screen. "Officially he has kept his old position, but since LA he has been quietly removed from it. Currently, Aldous has virtually no access to anything slightly related with the institute and, by association, with the clones."

"So… a little bit like yourself," Felix pokes with a smirk.

Delphine ignores his remark and, after a brief look towards the young man, her stare moves to Beth, who has been quietly listening to the conversation. "Needless to say, he isn't exactly pleased with this turn of events."

"Making it more likely to help us," the former cop finishes the thought with a small smile.

Delphine returns the smile, happy to see that, at least, she's not entirely among enemies. Still not understanding why they decided to keep Beth presence a secret, but she's pleased that the woman is here.

"Delphine… good to see you," Leekie's voice brings her attention back to the screen in front of her.

"You too, Aldous," she responds with a meek smile, adjusting the computer, so for now the camera is centered only on her.

The blonde observes him carefully; the man looks older, much older. In a few short months he has aged years, the wrinkles once smooth, giving him some sort of charm, had deepened and his eyes, once bright blue and full of life, are now dulled, liveless, like they belong to someone who has lost all purpose in life. "You look good," she says instead, stroking his ego for the sake of putting him in a better mood, one that would encourage him to talk.

He perks up a little. "Well, you look ravishing."

"Yes… yes, everyone looks spectacular," Sarah interrupts and slides closer to the doctor, getting in the frame.

"Ms. Manning," Leekie says in a more composed voice, "how are you and your… sisters?"

"We all look lovely," the clone gives him a fake smile. "What can you tell us about Rachel Duncan?"

"Straight to the business then," the man frowns.

"Yeah… sorry," Sarah retorts. "Never been one for the foreplay."

Leekie seems unmoved by the clone's hostility. "I suspect that Rachel wouldn't agree with you…" he says with a small glint in his eyes.

"That's traumatic," Felix comments from the other couch, where he sat on the armrest, next to Alison.

"Who's that?" The older man asks, slightly confused.

"No one you should care for," Sarah answers, her eyes moving to her brother with an ugly look.

"We have all the American clones here," Delphine intrudes with a more appeasing tone, aggravating Leekie further will only ensure that he'll stay quiet about what they want. "Everyone is very curious about this mysterious clone."

"What do I get for helping you?" Leekie raises his brow and leans back on his chair, his image gets further away and shows his white, pressed shirt. Even in asylum he keeps a respectable figure.

Next to Delphine, Sarah huffs and gets up in an instant. "We aren't giving you any damn thing, you fucking twat!" She strides away with impatience in her steps.

Delphine helplessly watches her go, back and forth along the large space, and when her gaze falls again on the man on the screen, she notices him equally displeased. This isn't a solution, if Sarah's the one who heads the negotiation they'll get nowhere, she lacks the diplomatic skills. The doctor motions subtly with her head for Beth to take over, but it's Cosima who moves to sit by her side, keeping a much closer distance than Sarah ever did, their shoulders brushing every time they move.

"How about you show the middle finger to DYAD," the American says, her eyes steady on the camera, an easy smile on her lips and gesticulating slightly with her hands. "They fucked you over, you get to fuck them back… no foreplay required."

Delphine finds herself looking at Cosima, a small smirk barely concealed. The man on the screen is also smiling, apparently more pleased to deal with the likes of Cosima.

"What makes you think DYAD has anything to do with Rachel?" He asks cryptically.

"Well… they created us…" Cosima answers confused, her hands moving faster. "You want us to believe they are not involved in Rachel's… exitance?"

"We did create her, but we did not raise her," Leekie explains. "As you know first hand, we never wanted you to be self aware. We observed and recorded your lives, but we never interfered." He clears his throat and moves closer to the camera. "Not until we've found out about the disease."

"But not Rachel?" Delphine frowns her brows, her body tensing slightly with the revelation. "She was raised..."

"Self aware," Leekie quickly finishes her thoughts. "But that's not the work of DYAD."

"That explains why I couldn't find anything about her," Delphine reasons. "But not how she came to be."

"Early in the project one of the surgates managed to... desert," Leekie starts, rearranging the screen and leaning back on his chair again. "We though she acted on her own, somehow found a way around the people we had keeping an eye on her and flee into anonymity, not be heard from again."

"And you didn't bother to look for her?" Sarah asks in angry astonishment, back on the frame by standing against the back of the couch, her head between the doctor's and the other clone's.

"Oh... we looked for her, alright," the man replies, raising both his hands. "But she simply disappeared.

"Thinking back, we should've known something wasn't right," he continues, his voice dropping a little with something close to regret. "No one should be able to escape us so cleanly - not without help. But we never heard from her again. For years the missing clone remained a thorn in DYAD's flesh and we never gave up looking for her, but as time passed without any information we even started to doubt that the pregnancy came to term."

"But you know about her now," Sarah interrupts the man's monologue, too impatient to let him go on unchecked.

The old scientist twists his lips and nods. "Twenty-two years later she resurfaced, or better, someone contacted DYAD saying they had proof of the existence of clones and the Institute's involvement in their - your - creation." He stirrs uncomfortably in his chair and clears his throat again. "As evidence of their claims they sent us a tape with Rachel telling the whole story, dates and names of the scientists who worked on the project throughout the years and files on a few European clones."

"What did they want?" Delphine asks. "Money?"

"If only it was that simple..." Leekie laughs humorlessly. "They were the ones who brought to our attention the clones' condition. As far as we know, Rachel was the first to show symptoms."

"They wanted a cure," Cosima concludes under her breath and raising her head to the screen. "They didn't have the science that would allow them to find the cure."

"Correct!" The man confirms curtly. "They had a clone who was dying and could do nothing about it.

"We made a few tests on the clones under our... guard and we're able to isolate the condition," Leekie explains. "It wasn't long before we started to work on a cure of our own."

Delphine narrows her eyes, her stare locked on the screen. "But you didn't give them the cure, did you?" She's sure of it, being intimately familiar with the way DYAD works. "You started to work on the cure, but never gave it to them."

"We don't do blackmail, Delphine," he stated simply. "So no, not at first."

"At first!?" Sarah exclaims, leaning more over the headrest, the wild hair brushing the doctor's cheeks, too close for comfort. "What made you change your minds? Not the goodness of your hearts, I'm sure."

Leekie's uneasiness is palpable even through a video conference, his chair squeaks under his weight as he moves again, hesitating a few times, the unrest obvious in his icy blue eyes, usually filled with self-assurance. "The European clones whose files they had started to dissappear," he begins tentatively. "When the first went missing, we didn't connect the dots, but then there was a second and a third..." Leekie shakes his head, shame was never something the French woman thought to see in his expression, yet there it was. "We deal with the entire situation very... poorly."

"How many?" Cosima's voice cuts coldly through the air, ending the unsettling silence which lasted for over a minute. "How many _women_ had to have gone missing before you finally gave them the cure?"

"Seven," Leekie answers in a low voice, dipping his head. "And we've only managed to recovered the bodies of five; official two are still considered missing."

Another heavy silence encapsulates the room, this time no one cares to put a stop to it, it's as if everyone needs a moment to mourn the women they never met, but had an undeniable connection with. Even Delphine can feel a heaviness in her heart, her stare leaving the man she considers her mentor, now appearing to her weak and crumbling under the burden of his wrongdoings, to find Cosima next to her. The petite woman looks even smaller, her shoulders lowered, twirling a ring on her left middle finger slowly, a dark semblance painted on her beautiful features, brows frowning and with her stare locked on her hands. Around her, the same expression is mirrored by the other women, the sight made even more disturbing by the understanding that they share identical features with the women who have been used as pawns in a game they didn't even know it existed. _Women_ ; Cosima's right. These are not just clones, but women, who may share identical looks but are individuals on their own right, who have their own personal life story and experiences which have built the singularities that distinguish them and made them into the women they are today.

"Eventually we did give them the cure," Leekie's voice enters the room through the speakers, but no one changes their stance. "Well, we gave them what we had at the time."

Delphine returns her stare to the screen." And when was that?"

"Too soon," he replies flatly. "Before you were even brought into the project. It was still too early to have some real results; we had preventive measures, treatments that would delay the progress of the disease, in some cases the growths would even diminish..."

"But not a cure," Sarah summarizes, pushing herself away from the back of the couch and giving a few steps to the center of the room.

"No, not a cure," Leekie shakes his head.

"But they didn't know that," Delphine deduces aloud, her mind beginning to recover from the shock. "When you gave it to them, they thought it was a permanent cure."

"It was Marion's idea," the man answers fast. "She figured it would buy us time to deal with the threat."

"Yeah... just enough time to plant that bomb on our doorstep," Beth intervenes, getting up and moving closer to the computer.

"Our investigation was cut short after the clones' existence was made public. After that, Marion took over, even if not officially," Leekie says. "She has managed to pull the board of directors to her side."

"They've lost the leverage they had," the blonde gets up and starts to pace back and forth, unable to remain still any longer. "The threat of going public with the clones is meaningless now and it's not like they can... eliminate any of them without raising eyebrows." She stops to look at Sarah, who's leaning against a cupboard not far from her. "What do they have on you?"

"Come again?" Sarah asks roughly, but it's obvious to the young doctor that she's defensive as well.

"They contacted you, didn't they?" Delphine inquires in a determined voice, struggling to sound as diplomatic as possible. "They want you to get the cure for Rachel, that seems obvious. It's why you're here, why you have been poking around the Institute. But they must have something to... encourage your task. And I assume it's something big, otherwise all of you wouldn't be here."

"It's none of your damn business!" Sarah snarls, in a single step she has her face right next to Delphine's.

"I am helping you!" Delphine says quickly, standing her ground long enough to see Sarah back down and put some distance between them. "I would like to know why."

"You don't need to know that in order to help," Cosima says from her place on the couch, her voice not nearly as excited as Sarah's and her eyes avoid looking directly in the blonde's way. "You need to give us the cure, Delphine."

At hearing her name, Delphine's temper eases considerably, her attention entirely diverted to the young dreadlocked woman, who has a pleading look in her gaze when she finally raises her head. She gives a small step in Cosima's direction, but stops, trying not to let herself get too emotional in front of so many people she takes a deep breath and shakes her head.

"I have no access to it," Delphine admits in a low voice. "Not since I came back from the States."

"What about telling us who they are," Alison asks, "can you do that?"

"We don't know who they are," Leekie answers, choosing only now to step back into the conversation. "They never identified themselves while we were dealing with them."

"Well... that's convenient." Felix offers, sarcastically.

"I can get you the cure," Aldous Leekie surprises everyone by saying. "But I'll need Delphine's help, or better, I know how she can get the cure."

Delphine raises her brow. From where she is, the blonde's eyes catch a glimpse of Cosima's intense gaze on her and she can't help but to feel the judgement in her eyes. Delphine is almost certain that Cosima is deciding if she's worth the trust they need to put on her. It's only when she allows herself to look around that she notices the same expression on everyone and Delphine needs to swallow a bitter chuckle.

"Of course, I'll need something in return," Leekie continues dryly.

Now, that's not surprising. Delphine rolls her eyes and the chuckle does come out, but the cause of it is Cosima's exact same reaction to Leekie's words.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Truly sorry about staying away from this story for so long, but I had to reevaluate where I wanted to go from there. I have now made a decision that, although it will cause this to become a bit longer than I expected, it will feel more like a homogeneous work. From now on the updates should become a bit more regular.  
> Thanks for the patience!

From the balcony Delphine could still hear the excited voices, her name coming up more than a couple of times, but she forces herself not to pay attention to what's being discussed, tries to shut the voices out. With her back to the closed double glass doors, Delphine continues to leisurely bring the cigarette to her lips and wait until the group decides if she is trustworthy.

It's an awkward position to be in; the only time in her life Delphine remembers having her integrity questioned was caused by her… indiscreet behaviour with Cosima - the irony of it all doesn't escape her. In a way she can understand why the clones would see her as an enemy, they saw DYAD as their rival for so long that it would be hard to break the habit. However, she thought that once she put them in contact with Leekie, all that would be set aside in favor of the confidence she showed in doing so. After all, if her actions were to be discovered, Delphine is sure she'll see herself without a job. Still, they don't trust her and the moment Leekie hinted that she would be needed to get what they wanted, the room went silent and all pairs of eyes went to her. She knows how to read a room and they didn't need to tell her to step outside so they could make a decision. So, here she is, waiting while they argue amongst themselves whether to trust Delphine or not.

Once the decision is made they're to call Aldous and inform him of it. He said he would wait one hour, after that, the deal would expire.

She's putting out her cigarette when the door slides open and she turns around, not at all surprised to see Cosima cross it and shut it behind herself.

"Do you really have to know?" The smaller woman asks, getting next to Delphine, leaning on the rail, her arms crossed over it and with her eyes trained on the horizon.

"I think it's only fair, don't you?" Delphine answers, in the corner of her eye she catches the clone's frown. "If I'm to jeopardize my career, I should know why I'm doing it."

Cosima sighs and turns to face Delphine. "You think we would ask if it wasn't important?"

"No, probably not," she agrees, "but trust goes both ways. If this thing backfires I'm the only one who'll pay the price. I've got the right to know."

Cosima bites her lip thoughtfully and faces the bright lights of the afternoon. "They have Helena," she finally says. "We don't know how they got to her and last time we checked she was still under the care of DYAD."

"Who does?" Delphine asks confused, her eyes lowered, staring straight at Cosima's profile. "Whoever is asking for the cure?"

Cosima nods. "They said if we don't give them what they want they would…" she stops to shake her head, chasing away dark thoughts. "We had our doubts they would actually follow through, but after what Leekie told us…" Finally she raises her eyes to Delphine and the pain written in them makes the blonde's heart squeeze tightly. "We need to get her, Delphine. She's… difficult, but she's one of us."

"And what makes you so sure they'll release her once they have what they want?" Delphine asks, because she knows exactly how these kind of people work; whoever they are, they're not all that different from DYAD.

"Jeez, can't we deal with one fucking humongous problem at a time?" Cosima expels, exasperated. "First order of business is to get the damn cure. You know where it is, Leekie says he knows how to get you inside, then we'll see what we do next!" She says, conclusively.

"You know, we wouldn't have so many problems if you decided to trust me and asked for my help to begin with," Delphine starts to say, matter-of-factually.

"You're one of them!" The clone cuts her off loud enough for the several heads inside to turn their way.

"Every thing I did was for your benefit," Delphine counters, equally loud, upset by the immediate push back. "I found the cure! I saved your life and your sisters'!"

"That's exactly what Leekie said," Cosima points out bitterly. "And I didn't ask for this, all you did was find a solution for a problem you created in the first place."

"I did not create the problem, Cosima," the doctor reminds her in a calmer tone but still annoyed; she simply doesn't want to exchange accusations that will lead nowhere good. "But that didn't stop me from helping you. The same way that I'll help you now, despite the fact that all of you still see me as one of them."

With that she walks with angry steps to the door and, forcefully opens it. "Call Leekie," she announces once she's inside. "Tell him I'm in!"

Startled eyes look at her, frozen for a brief moment before the room comes back to life. Delphine watches as Sarah is the one who take the initiative to sit in front of the laptop and starts to make the call.

"You're doing the right thing," Beth encourages in a quiet voice, having step closer to the blonde and placing a hand on her shoulder.

Delphine moves her eyes from the clone still in the balcony and faces the former cop with a weak smile and a short nod. It's not that she doesn't doubt that, the doctor knows that, ultimately, this is the right course of action. The hesitation she has shown so far it's not because she doesn't believe this is the right thing to do, but rather the fact that, in doing so, she needs to place a great deal of faith, not only in the group of clones - who're still, at the very least, skeptical about trusting her -, but in Leekie as well. Besides, she doubts that once the people who have Helena get what they want, they'll simply give her back. Leekie is right in one thing: you shouldn't negotiate with these people, it sets a bad precedent. Delphine could think like Cosima and worry about the next step as it comes, but she's not wired that way; she likes to have the full game plan before she steps into the field.

"Have you reached a decision?" Leekie's voice fills the room and pauses her thoughts.

"Yeah!" Sarah roughly replies. "Blondie's gonna do it."

Delphine cringes slightly hearing that, but says nothing, her mind wondering how much of a fight it was for Sarah to allow Cosima to share information with her.

"Good, good…" the man says. "I thought she might. Delphine was always very devoted to you."

Sarah snorts. "To some more than others…"

Having enough of it, Delphine decides to regain control of the meeting, moving with steady steps to sit herself next to the brit clone and get in the line of sight of the small camera.

"How do we get the cure?" She asks, her eyes set on the older scientist.

To her surprise, he shakes his head. "You should be asking what you can do for me," he says with a smile that gives Delphine no comfort.

Disgruntled, Delphine rolls her eyes. "Fine! What do you need me to do?" She corrects herself shortly, giving him what he needs with the purpose to get that out of the way.

Leekie's smile grows larger, clear happy with it. "Fortunately for you, the first step to achieve both our interests is the same," he reclines comfortably against his big leather chair, his icy blue eyes staring directly into the camera. "I'm gonna need you to meet a friend. A Russian fellow, goes by the name of Kasparov. He'll meet you the day after tomorrow in Brussels and give you what you need to access DYAD's more… sensitive areas."

The blonde rises an eyebrow, in the periphery of her attention she notices Cosima reentering the room. "Aldous, I'm sure you remember that the codes and keycards are changed every week for security reasons…"

"Yes, yes… I know that," he waves his hands dismissively. "But I'm a man who likes to be prepared. This friend of mine has a way around that, I've first requested his services the moment I started to climb DYAD's power leader and he gave me a marvelous, little device that I eventually plugged in and synced with the institute's security system."

"You hacked DYAD?!" Delphine asks awestruck, her voice raises a few octaves.

"I think I'm starting to like you," Sarah comments next to her, a sly grin on her lips.

"Now, Delphine, hack is such a strong word… I… made sure that my interests were preserved," he says with the same unsettling smile. "And look! Now you can use it to help everyone in that room."

"As long as we do what you want," Cosima steps in, crossing the room and standing behind the couch. "Which is?"

The man recovers some of his serenity and leans forward, his face getting closer on the screen. "What Kasparov has will give Delphine unrestricted access to every single door in DYAD," he explains. "All I'm asking is that, once she goes in there to get your cure, she makes a little detour and grabs something for me as well."

"Or I just get the cure once I have the thing and leave you out to dry…" Delphine challenges.

Leekie nods. "Oh, I'm sure you can do that," he agrees, but doesn't sound the least bit concerned. "Of course that if you do that, I can easily get in touch with someone in the institute and tell them what you've been up to," the threat comes with a smile. "And I know that my reputation with DYAD is not the best, but do you really think they'll doubt my word when they realize something is missing? Especially after what happened in LA? If there's something that what happened to me has proven, is that DYAD doesn't hesitate to make its weight be felt by someone who crosses them."

Delphine swallows thickly, averting her eyes from the man she once called mentor. In her mind several scenarios play out, going from her losing her job to one where she ends up in jail.

"I don't want to do that, Delphine," Leekie says in a softer tone. "Not after all the trouble I went through to make sure that my team of scientists were safe from prosecution. But I will not tolerate backstabbing! If you betray me, you need to be ready to suffer the consequences."

"Okay," Cosima's voice next to her ear cuts the growing tension in the room. "So, we get the thing that'll open the doors. What then?"

"Then you're on your own," Leekie states simply. "I'm sure Delphine's familiar enough with the building to know where to search."

"What about the cameras?" Cosima asks, her voice demanding.

Leekie merely shrugs. "She should avoid them, of course. There are blind spots she can explore and when all else fails… ski masks."

"Great!" The deadlock clone expels, her hands squeeze hard on the couch's headrest before she pulls away.

"What I need is on the fourth floor. Last I saw it, was inside a manila envelope, capitalised _AL_ in bold letters written on it," he carries on, unfazed.

"The fourth floor has many offices, Aldous," Delphine reminds him.

"Well, it's in Marion's office, of course. Where else?" Leekie says with a satisfied smirk. "Giving credit to the gossips circulating around, you are intimately familiar with it."

Delphine clenches her jaw and refrains from answering Leekie's provocation as she writes down the time and place for her to meet the Russian friend. The call ends shortly after, with Leekie giving her instructions on how to report to him after "the deed is done".

"I don't like it!" Cosima says loud when the older scientist's presence no longer looms over them.

"You wanted the cure," Delphine points out, still sat on the couch.

"This is not a plan, Delphine," the small woman insists, her hands waving energetically in front of her. "You're not gonna meet some Russian hacker with a God complex on your own."

Felix snorts. "What makes you say he has a god complex?"

"Kasparov? Really?!" Cosima answers, humorlessly. "And then what? You're gonna break into DYAD with nothing but this guy's little gadget and a ski mask?!"

"Well, do you have a better idea?" Alison finally speaks, her hand nervously pulling her pearl necklace.

"I do," Beth intervenes, giving one small step into the middle of the room. "I mean… you'll still have to do all those things, I'm afraid," she says with an apologizing stare on Delphine. "But you don't have to do it alone," she continues. "DYAD doesn't know I'm here, I can stay and work it with you."

"No!" Cosima says fast. "I will. They only need to see three clones boarding the plane."

"And why are you more useful than Beth?" Sarah gets up from the couch. "She used to be a cop, she's objectively more suited to do this."

"I think the answer is pretty obvious," Felix says, waving his hand once and turning his back on the discussion.

Cosima sighs deeply and shakes her head. "No, we need Beth's contacts if this thing goes sideways," she explains. "We need her as far away from this as possible, which was exactly the same reasoning we used when we decided that DYAD shouldn't know she was coming. Or that doesn't matter anymore now that it's not one of us who's putting their ass on the line?"

The room is silent for a long time, stares exchanged between its occupants as they evaluate their options. Delphine crosses her eyes with Cosima on more than one occasion, not sure if she should feel thankful that the clone had fought so fiercely to stay or fearful that Cosima has put herself in the line of fire, argued so hard to be part of something that has everything to go wrong.

"Alright!" Sarah concedes, clapping her hands together. "Beth, looks like you're getting dreads and a pierced nose."

The other woman laughs and it's like the tension in the room starts to dissolve. "Like hell I am!"


	12. Chapter 12

Delphine leaves the clones to ultimate their departure among themselves. After feeble goodbyes to the people she won't be seeing again and agreeing with Cosima to meet the next day at a café she knows it's far enough from the institute that won't cause them to cross paths with anyone who could recognise the clone, Delphine heads home.

When she arrives she was not expecting to find the house silent. She checks her phone for any sort of contact attempt from her girlfriend that she might have missed, but there's none. Claire doesn't return until close to dinner, when Delphine is working on her computer to catch up on the projects under her care, reviewing reports from her staff and small notes on the things she wants to discuss with them, knowing that it's important not to disregard her official responsibilities so not to draw attention to herself.

"You're home?" Claire asks surprised, carrying bags of groceries to the kitchen.

Delphine sets the computer on the coffee table in front of the couch she's sitting on. "And you went shopping," she says, getting up and walking to the kitchen.

Claire is putting things away, not meeting the doctor's eyes. "I was not sure I would be seeing you today," she comments under her breath.

The blonde raises a brow and stops to give a good look at her girlfriend, a package of rice on her hands that she means to put in the small pantry. "Why would you think that?" She asks. "If that was the case I would've let you know."

The other woman shrugs, but never stops what she's doing. "I just assumed," she answers in a casual tone, "since it's the last night the clones are in town."

After another small pause in her task, Delphine closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, resuming her work. She hates to have to lie to her girlfriend - after all, it's to avoid lies that they choose to have this sort of relationship. However, this time it feels different; the fact that Cosima will remain in the country in order to help Delphine break into her place of employment and basically steal classified information, makes her change the rules about being absolutely honest with Claire. This goes beyond their relationship, in fact it has nothing to do with it.

"It wasn't meant to be," Delphine responds, tiredness transpires in her voice.

"And you're okay with that?" Claire pushes, finally looking the doctor in the eye.

"Why do we need to continue to talk about this?" Delphine asks, grasping to keep her irritation under control. "Cosima's leaving. Nothing happened between us. End of story!" She concludes a little more harshly than she wanted.

"Then why are you so mad?" Claire refuses to drop the subject, her girlfriend's tone not passed unnoticed. "If that's all there is…"

"Because you keep pushing the subject," Delphine interrupts her. "Ever since she has arrived it seems like it's all we talk about. And then you had to go and pull that move at the club…" she stops and sighs, now feeling annoyed with herself for losing her cool.

Claire stares at her for a while, expression closed, not giving away her thoughts, until she finally speaks again. "Maybe because I know she's the only thing on your mind since she arrived," the tone is flat, but the words are an accusation nonetheless. "In fact," she carries on, "I doubt you ever stopped thinking about her since you two meet."

"That's ridiculous!" Delphine replies quickly and storms out of the kitchen.

"Is it?" The other woman presses on, following her into the living room. "I mean… after I met her, I understand why you are so… smitten. Cosima's nice, gorgeous and she has a little spark to her that I know you like," she says it without a hint of malice, speaking matter-of-factually. "But what I can't stand is that you won't admit it, you prefer lie to yourself and me, by association."

Delphine clenches her jaw, her back turned to her girlfriend as she takes another deep breath. "What do you want me to say, Claire?" She asks in a defeated voice, lowering her head.

"I don't know," comes the answer, spoken in a low timber. "I guess I want you to say that everything is going to be alright, that things will get back to what they used to be."

"They will!" Delphine tries to sound determined, but she doesn't know anymore if it's to assure her girlfriend or herself. "But I need time," she adds much more softly.

"Okay," Claire's tone remains low, walking closer to the blonde until she has her arms around Delphine's torso, pressed against the long frame. "I can give you time, as long as you promise me you'll return."

Delphine turns around in the other woman's arms and raises her hands to cradle her cheeks. The pain she sees in Claire's eyes dives a knife to her heart. From the start she had vowed to herself not to be the cause of such pain, it was never her intention to hurt her girlfriend and yet here it is, for her to contemplate the harm she is the perpetrator of.

Delphine kisses her once, softly on the lips, but pulls back slowly right after. "I think I better stay a few days at my place."

The doctor watches as Claire grimaces, not so much caused by Delphine saying she's going to stay away - it's not the first time she does so -, but because of the use of the _my place_ expression. Delphine uses it when she's referring to the small apartment she lived in before they moved in together. To her girlfriend home is where they are now, _their place_ , not the minuscule flat Delphine had insisted to keep to herself under the pretext of having somewhere to store the few things she has collect in her single life.

In reality that house has probably saved their relationship on more than one occasion, when things got too intense for either of the two fiercely independent women to deal with. Putting some space between themselves has revealed to be as important as being honest with each other.

Delphine figure it was also where she would put Cosima in during her stay, this way she could avoid hotels and the records they keep of their guests. So, in a way, it works out: it will be easier for the doctor to keep an eye on the clones' activities, make sure no more manoeuvres are being made behind her back. It's not that Delphine doesn't want to trust the newly forged alliance; it's just that she can't find it in herself to do so. Too many times that same trust has been broken for her to blindly follow the clones steps.

She stays for dinner though. The mood between them justifiably tense and doesn't improve when Delphine goes to the bedroom and starts to pack a few clothes in a dufflebag. Claire watches from the doorstep, arms crossed over her chest and not saying a word. Not that she has to; her expression tells Delphine that this is not something her girlfriend is remotely on board with.

It's only when the blonde is taking of a couple of suits out of the closet and neatly packing the on the garment bag that Claire asks. "How long will you be staying there?"

"I'm not sure," Delphine answers honestly. "A couple of days… maybe a week."

She carries the bags to the front door, where she stops to dress a blazer and fish the car keys out of the small desk they have by the door. She'll need those if she's to drive to Brussels to meet Leekie's contact.

"I'll call you," Delphine assures Claire, turning around to face her while she adjusts the collar of the coat.

Her girlfriend steps closer, hands raising to help straighten the jacket. "Okay," she nods, the voice barely audible. "Do what you have to."

During the entire drive to her old place Delphine feels like shit. Claire is being far more understanding than she deserves and despite being fully aware of this, Delphine doesn't seem to be able to stop it. For someone who's always been so proud of thinking and acting rationally, these events are a nasty blow to her empiric mind. In the past it has never been difficult to keep her emotional side under control, predominantly it's logic that guides her actions, but now, no matter how she tries to spin it, it seems like her emotions caught up to her with fury, retaliating for being ignored for so long. Still, Delphine tries to shut those emotions down, she's convinced that, once this is all said and done, once Cosima really leaves, everything will get back to normal, she can resume her life with Claire. Sure, it might be awkward in the first few weeks, the same way it was when she got back from the States, but things will get back to the way they were.

She has manage to rationalise that much during the ride, and when Delphine opens the door to her small apartment she's feeling slightly better. There's no point in falling prey to desperation, maybe Cosima's approach is the wisest: concentrate on one problem at a time. Now she needs to find a way to help the clones get the cure. Only then will she focus on how to make the trade successfully. She won't be able to resolve her problems with Claire when her mind is held captive by problems that feel much more urgent.

To her surprise, Delphine has a good night of sleep, waking up well into Sunday morning, probably because of the decision she has made the night before, even if she's not sure she can stick with it. But, at least for now, it was enough to give her some comfort and she wakes up fully energised.

It's easy to ignore all her problems when there's so much to do. The apartment hasn't seen a living soul for months and it's in dire need of a good cleaning. Towels and sheets that have been inside drawers for a long time go in the wash to lose the dusty smell, the small living room and bedroom get some attention and even the dishes, glasses and silverware are rinsed through water and dishwasher soap, left on the counter to dry on their own. The space might not be big, but it occupies Delphine for several hours, classical music blaring from her old stereo keeps her company and helps her losing track of time.

At five in the afternoon and after a long shower, the blonde is ready to leave and meet the clone left behind. The only thing left to do is a stop at a grocery store to restock the food supplies.

She drives to the small café well outside the city centre, situated in a residential area and only frequented by the people who live in the neighbourhood, spending the warm afternoon casually chatting with friends and family while they keep an eye on the children left to play on the park adjacent to it. Cosima goes unnoticed by the several patrons, Delphine's pleased to observe once she gets close enough to see the clone sat at a table outside, a big, blue suitcase next to her, the long glass in front of the brunette with only some half melted ice cubes indicate she's been here for a while. Cosima has a small smile on her lips, her stare tracks the movements of a small girl, no older than five, playing with a golden retriever that's far larger than her.

"Bonjour Cosima," Delphine says softly not to startle her, standing on the opposite side of the table.

"Oh… hi!" Cosima greets her, but her attention is still mostly on the little girl.

The blonde takes the seat across from her at the table, feeling like an intruder, especially when Cosima continues not to really acknowledge her and the small smile had disappeared. It takes a long time for the other woman to pay attention to her, the waiter has come to take Delphine's order and returned with it and Cosima remains without giving her so much as a glance. Only when, who the doctor assumes is the mother gets close to the child and pulls her by the hand to leave the park does Cosima looks at Delphine.

"So…" she starts after a deep breath, as if gathering her thoughts. "Do you have any idea how are we gonna do this?"

Delphine nods, choosing not to address the long time she had to wait for the other woman's attention. "I have a place where you could stay," she says. "But we need to do some shopping first."

"What sort of place?" Cosima asks with a tilt of the head.

"A small apartment, far enough from the institute that you should be safe."

"Okay," Cosima agrees, but there's no doubt that she remains suspicious about fully trusting the doctor's good judgment.

Delphine nibbles her lower lip as she feels the tension between them growing, Cosima's distrust, while not as severe as before, is still present in every interaction.

"I think I owe you my gratitude," Delphine says in an attempt to mend some of the damage to their relationship.

"What for?" Cosima frowns.

"Staying, I guess," she answers with a shrug.

"It didn't feel right to leave you to deal with all this shit on your own," Cosima explains in a tone that doesn't convey any emotion. "Especially when you're doing us a favor."

Delphine chuckles. "The way Sarah talked it felt more like she was doing _me_ a favor."

"Sarah's looking out for us," the clone counters. "We are her first priority, but that doesn't mean we don't value what you're doing for us."

"She has a funny way to show it," the doctor responds with irony, but the glare Cosima gives her makes Delphine immediately regret it.

"You don't know what she's been through," Cosima bites back and by the tone Delphine knows she has misstepped. "If she's so distrustful is because she has good reasons."

"Not from me!" The blonde corrects her. "I've never did anything…" she stops herself and breaths in deeply. "You know what? Never mind, I'm done trying to justify myself to you."

Delphine gets up and starts to walk in the direction of her car, parked in the back of the café, expecting Cosima to follow her. The American, apparently being caught by surprise by the sudden change, struggles to keep up and Delphine is already inside the car, pulling the seatbelt when Cosima opens the door and slides in after stuffing her luggage in the back.

She drives in silence, annoyed that these days it seems like she can't have a conversation without it going downhill, wondering where did her usually conciliatory disposition has gone to. When she starts a conversation it's never her intention for it to end in a heated exchange of accusations, but these days it seems inevitable. Delphine glaces to the side when they're stopped in a red light, the girl has her face locked outside the window, completely turned away from the blonde, who only shakes her head to herself and keeps her silence. Delphine doesn't think of herself as someone inflexible, she always thought she did a good job listening to others and having an open mind, accepting other people's advices when she deemed them worthy. But now, faced with such difficulties, she's permanently questioning herself; she believes she's been reasonable when dealing with the recent problems, but perhaps her peacemaking abilities are not nearly as good as she thought.

She parks the car right in front of the building that houses her old apartment and reaches behind for her purse, taking out the keys.

"Last floor, door on the left," she indicates dryly, handing Cosima the keys. Initially she had thought about going shopping with the other woman, but their recent confrontation had changed her mind and she needs some time away from the clone.

"Where are you going?" Cosima asks confused, but takes the keys.

"I'm going to the store to get some food," she informs in the same detached tone. "You can make yourself comfortable, I'll be back in half an hour."

Cosima hufs, not bothered to disguise her irritation and gets out, slamming the door shut and gathers the big bag from the backseat. Delphine stays in the car, watching the petite woman struggle with her luggage to reach the front door, but suppresses the instinct to get out to help her.

She drives away the instant Cosima enters the building, the tires screeching against the pavement with the sudden acceleration.

Delphine takes much longer than she had promised, roaming the aisles of the large supermarket, pushing the cart in front of her and getting what she thinks it'll be necessary for two people in one week. She's not sure how long Cosima will stay, but she figures it's better to be prepared. When she gets to the cashier the cart is well stocked.

She's feeling much calmer when she rings the bell, the door buzzes open and she gets to the elevator, several bags slowing her down. The front door is already open when she reaches the floor, the TV's on with the volume low, Cosima gives her a quick glance from the couch she's sitting on.

"Need help," she offers, apparently unable to keep the bitter edge away from her voice.

"That won't be necessary," Delphine declines fast, moving to the kitchen, "thanks."

Cosima doesn't join her in the kitchen and Delphine is thankful for that; the least contact they have with one another for the time being the better. After she puts the groceries away, Delphine starts to work on the dinner, no matter how upset they are with each other, they still have to eat. It's not until everything is ready that Delphine returns to the living room, standing there for a moment, not really sure what to do while she observes Cosima, laid on the couch, eyes closed and breathing evenly.

Delphine sighs, approaching the sleepy girl slowly. "Cosima," she calls softly, placing a hand on her shoulder and squeezing gently.

Cosima groans something, turning to her side and Delphine has to shake her a little more vigorously. The clone opens her eyes, blinking a few times disoriented, before she takes off her glasses and rubs her eyes, ruining the makeup on the process.

The sight brings a small smile to the blonde's lips. "You can rest after you eat," she coaxes lowly and walks away.

"I think I dozed off," she hears Cosima saying.

"It's fine," Delphine throws over her shoulder, watching Cosima get up and entering the bathroom.

When the American re-emerges her face is clean and it startles Delphine how that simple gesture makes Cosima look even more similar to the other clones. She shakes her head and sits at the table, Cosima following her lead. They eat quietly, even if Delphine noticed the other woman eyeing her on more than one occasion, but their interaction remains tense, the fight from earlier clearly still on Cosima's mind as well.

"Where are we, anyway?" The American finally asks,leaning against the doorframe that leads to the kitchen, where Delphine is doing the dishes.

"I used to live here before I moved in with Claire," she answers without looking back.

"And you kept it?" Cosima's asks surprised.

"Yes."

"And she doesn't mind you keeping your bachelor pad?" There's really no judgement in the the voice, the comment meant to provoke Delphine.

The blonde cleans her hands on the towel and throws it at the countertop. "Why are you being so difficult?" She asks exasperated, facing Cosima.

"I'm just curious," the other woman shrugs, but there's a small glint in her eyes that proves she knows exactly what she's doing.

"No, you're not!" The blonde counters determined. "You're intentionally trying to piss me off," she accuses and brushes pass Cosima's on her way to the bedroom, where she opens a drawer and retrieves the sheets. "But I've had enough of that… from you, from Sarah," she continues, loud enough to be heard in the entire house, opening the closet with a fast swing of her arm and getting a blanket and a pillow. "I won't have it anymore!"

Cosima watches in silence as Delphine carries everything into the living room and places it on top of the couch. When the blonde raises herself and stands there, staring at her with a closed expression, the clone tilts her head, confused.

"You're sleeping on the couch," Delphine informs her pointedly.

Slight indignation in Cosima's expression as she looks the other woman straight in the eye. "Is that how you treat your guests?"

"You have done nothing to deserve better!"

With that, Delphine grabs the computer case and heads to the bedroom, closing the door a little more violently than she meant to.


	13. Chapter 13

In the morning Delphine wakes up early, the alarm clock rings a few times before she stretches her hand for the phone and shuts it down. It takes a moment before her mind catches up with what's going on with her life and when it does, she groans and pulls the blankets over her head, wanting to steal a few more minutes from the morning. But it's no use, her mind is already alerted, gears turning full speed, making a list of everything she must do in only a day.

As she moves around the house, Delphine is careful not to wake up the petite woman sleeping on the couch. Cosima has shut the blinds on the living room the night before, but the door leading to the kitchen was left open and the space is not fully dark, allowing Delphine to move about without bumping into anything. When the blonde leaves the bathroom, still drying her hair with a towel, while another is wrapped around her body, she's startled by Cosima's eyes on her, head peering over the back of the couch.

"You're leaving?" She asks in a voice still hoarse from sleep.

"I need to go to work," Delphine answers, restarting to move, recovered from the initial shock. "But I'll try to get out early, probably will be back at lunch," she muses aloud. "We have a long trip ahead of ourselves."

Cosima seems to relax after hearing this, resting her back against the pillow but with her eyes she continues to follow the doctor's every move. "How long will it take?"

"At least 3 hours each way," Delphine goes to the bedroom and leaves a sliver of the door open so the clone can hear her. "Plus the time we'll spend there." She dresses as she speaks, her mind working around another solution. "Perhaps is better if we take the train."

"And it will be faster?" Cosima asks from the other room.

"Much," Delphine says, reaching for her phone. "We can catch the TGV that leaves early in the afternoon, it will take less than half the time."

"Or you can call in sick and we leave right now."

Still buttoning her blouse, Delphine returns to the living room. "No," she quickly replies. "I don't want to bring more attention to myself than necessary."

"Right, right..." Cosima nods. "Good thinking."

The Frenchwoman looks at her with a raised brow. The clone appears to be a little less hostile this morning, it seems the night on the couch did her good. Perhaps Delphine should've been firmer from the start; she has given Cosima and the rest of the clones too much power. Maybe she should've kept them in a shorter leash when it came to deal with her directly.

"I also want to get there early, before most of the institute's staff arrives," Delphine goes on to explain, slipping on her heels. "See if I can get close to the area where I believe the cure is being stored without raise big, red flags."

"Won't they see you on the cameras?" Cosima asks frowning and choking down a yan. "What time is it anyway?"

"Six thirty," Delphine answers without pause. "And I'll try to avoid the cameras," she pulls the blazer over her shoulders. "Call it a test drive. If I can do this and no one brings it up, then I know it can be done."

"I really don't think that's a good idea," Cosima says low.

Finally Delphine stops and looks at the clone, finding big, brown eyes pinned on her. "Better be caught now, that I'm not doing anything wrong, than later."

Cosima's concerned expression follows her to the door. "I'd prefer if you didn't get caught, if that's okay with you."

The blonde gives a small smile and nods. "Get some more sleep," she opens the door. "I'll be back for lunch."

Her old place is much further from the Institute than she's used to and in an area of the city that's not so well served by public transportation, which means that, in order to avoid the long commute, Delphine has to take the car. But that's the only thing that changes in her routine. After parking in the DYAD's lot, she goes to the same bakery she does every day and orders the same thing: black coffee and a plain croissant to go. She waves the security guard and scans her key card to register her entry, knowing that the early hour won't cause too much fuss, since she comes early every time the workload starts to stack up on her desk. The only change is that, instead of staying at her desk after she logs on to her account and opens the first email waiting for her, she leaves.

With the lab coat on, she walks the silent, empty hallways of her wing. Most offices have the door wide open, lights off, confirming that she's the first to arrive. As casually as she can, Delphine takes notice of the cameras in this part of the building, not surprised to see that, aside from the two that guard each entrance to the corridor, there aren't any. The most sensitive information is in the labs and this area only houses offices.

The story changes when she reaches the labs. Not only is the hall well covered with security cameras, but there's a biometric lock on each of the labs and a camera directly aimed at the door. Unfortunately Delphine's clearance only gets her so far and the section which holds anything related to the clones' project is out of reach. The area itself is separated by a thick, white and very well locked door, only a small window allows her to peer into the place, not that it'll tell her anything new. Delphine knows the area, she has worked there for over two years when working on the cure and knows that it's composed by two small labs that side the big, main one where the cure is kept frozen in a refrigerated backroom. The only problems is that she wasn't looking for cameras and other security measures when she worked there. However, like the other labs, she knows that only a index print with the right security clearance will give her access and, since the outside of the labs is relatively small, cameras easily cover the entire space.

Leekie might be a tad insane, but his advice about ski masks isn't completely misplaced. There's no way she can get in there undetected. The Russian's gadget may have a way around the biometric locks, but the cameras will always get her.

All this Delphine notices as she slowly walks to one of the labs she does has access to. Not wanting to linger, she scans her finger and pushes the door open. Once inside, the doctor takes the opportunity to check on some of the works she has under her responsibility. Thirty minutes later she's leaving. In the halls she crosses scientists who are arriving for the morning and calmly greets them.

Delphine doesn't leave her office the rest of the morning, wondering when will someone come in or summon her presence to question her about the early tour. No one ever does though and she works without much interruptions, save for the occasional, harmless phone call from one of her staffers asking for her opinion about the development of a project.

"Claude, would you come in here, please," she calls her assistant over the phone when the lunch hour is upon her. A faint knock on the door followed by the young man makes her raise her eyes from the lab report she's going over. "How's my schedule looking for the afternoon?" She asks.

"Aside from a conference call with Berlin at four, it's completely clear," he answers without needing to check her agenda, because Claude is the kind of assistant who makes it his mission to know everything there is to know about the person he's working for, without meddling into her personal affairs.

"Can that be rescheduled?"

He smiles. "I'm sure that's possible," Claude says and prepares to leave, easily reading into her meaning, but stops short of the door. "Dr. Cormier…" he hesitates for a moment before continuing. "Maybe you should take a few days off. I can make adjustments to your schedule… hmm… give you a week or so. You haven't had three days in a row for months."

Delphine leans back, the leather of her chair creaks while she sighs and rakes her fingers through her curls. "Do I look that bad?" She asks with a weak smile.

He chuckles and shakes his head. "You just look tired."

"Maybe a couple of days," she says. "I'll think about it."

He gives her a knowing look, his boss has no intention to follow through. It's not that Delphine's not dreaming about vacation, she knows she desperately needs it too. Unfortunately, it will be a terrible idea to disappear if her mission is successful and if it's not, she'll see herself having plenty of free time since she'll be out of a job - if not with her ass in jail.

There's a pleasant smell coming from inside her apartment when Delphine reaches the front door and once she opens it she hears music coming from the kitchen, low base fills the house. The blonde smiles to herself, placing the purse on the couch, where the bedsheets Cosima used at night are neatly folded on a corner and strips her coat, draping it on the headrest before moving to the kitchen.

Cosima's swaying her hips at the rhythm of the beat blaring from the speaker of the phone placed on the small kitchen table, with her back to the door, distracted by whatever she's doing on the counter, the clone had failed to notice Delphine's arrival. The doctor stands by the door for a couple of minutes, silently observing the other woman, the same smile on her lips, before she announces her presence.

"What are you doing?" She asks in a soft voice, so not to startle the dancing woman.

Still, Cosima turns around gasping, a hand placed over her heart as if to slow it down. "Lunch," she answers when she recovers. "I figure it would be nice… you cooked dinner last night, I fix lunch today," she explains, turning back around while she continues to talk. "You see… it's a little thing called reciprocation."

Delphine approaches her from behind and sneaks a peek over her shoulder. "Do you need help?" She asks, watching the clone put two of the stakes she's brought yesterday on the hot pan, where they sizzle softly, in a pot mashed potatoes emanate a strong scent of nutmeg.

"Nah, it's okay. I've got this under control," Cosima moves her face to the side and smiles. "Mostly," she adds with a wink.

The blonde chuckles and moves back to give her some room. "Alright," she nods and walks to the door. "I'm going to clean up. If you need anything just call."

After leaving the bathroom Delphine searches for the phone in her bag, hearing Cosima's curse loudly as she dropped something metallic on the floor, judging by the noise. She twists her lips, but doesn't dare to enter the kitchen, thinking it's probably better not to know exactly what happened. A neurotic feeling pinches the back of her head just thinking about someone going through her stuff. At least she's trying, she reasons. Yep, the night on the couch did its job.

"Allô?"

Claire picks up the phone and Delphine refocuses her attention on what she's doing, abstracting herself from Cosima's presence. "Claire, hi," she answers softly, relieved to hear the voice of her girlfriend without any trace of the hurt from their last conversation.

"Is everything okay?" She sounds slightly concerned. "Why are you calling so early?"

The doctor forces her brain to walk the hallways of misdirection she's not used to cross when talking with her partner. "I'll be working late today," she says, hating the lie. "I don't know what time I'll get out and was afraid to catch you sleeping."

"You work too much, Delphine," she says and it only makes Delphine feel worse. "One day they're going to usurp your soul."

She snorts, but it's a humourless thing. "I talked with Claude about taking some days off when things slow down. We can go somewhere." Even before she's finished she can feel the bitter taste of deception in her mouth.

"Things will never slow down," Claire replies in a low tone, and the doctor feels cornered because her girlfriend tends to be right about these things. "Anyway," the other woman says after a silence that stretches for too long. "I believe it when we're both lying on a sunny beach, improving our tans."

This time the laughter is a little more honest. "Sipping cold margaritas," Delphine jokes and enjoys the laugh on the other end. "I got to go," she says after a long breath.

"I know," Claire's voice returns to the somber intonation. "Call me tomorrow?"

"Of course," Delphine nods even if her girlfriend can't see it.

It takes a brief moment before they hang up, neither of them very good at maneuvering themselves between feelings they don't know how to express, nor ever needed to until now. When, with a sigh, Delphine turns around she sees Cosima standing by the kitchen door, her eyes on the doctor with a curious expression that she doesn't know what it means.

"Was that Claire?" Cosima asks casually, her arms crossed over her chest. Delphine, however, is not in the right frame of mind to grant her an answer. "It was her, wasn't it? She doesn't know I'm here and you don't like that you have to hide it from her," the brunette says with a disarming certainty.

"I thought you didn't speak French," the blonde comments under her breath, putting her phone back on the bag.

"I don't," Cosima shakes her head and uncrosses her arms, setting them free to fly around but with short movements. "But I could tell by the tone of your voice." When Delphine raises a brow in her direction, the clones' expression softens. "That and the fact that you never mentioned my name," she adds a little lighter.

"Very perceptive of you," the Frenchwoman mumbles, passing by the smaller woman on her way to the kitchen. "Is the food ready?" She asks, immediately removing her eyes from the mess on the counter.

"As ready as it'll ever be," Cosima answers, following her close behind.

They eat mostly in silence and Delphine's surprised to discover that, despite the chaotic state she has left the cooking area, Cosima knows her way around the kitchen. She even insists on cleaning up after they're finished.

By two-thirty they're ready to leave.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright wonderful readers, this chapter is a bit... well... you decide for yourselves... Just a quick reminder that this story is not beta'd and that I probably should give this another read, but since I plan to clean it up when it's complete.. screw it!

Delphine guides a very excited Cosima along the large train station, big brown eyes inspect intensively all that surrounds them, trying to absorb as much information as possible in the minutes that takes the doctor to walk them to the right platform and into the train. Delphine can't help but find it endearing; to her this has become almost boring, not a month goes by when she doesn't need to travel abroad and the TGV is her preferred method of transportation. The trip itself might take a bit longer, but this way she avoids the long wait at the airport and uses some of the time to work.

She had spared no expenses to buy 1st class tickets, doesn't care if she needs to spend extra if it means she'll be able to avoid the cars filled with groups of noisy teens backpacking through Europe. So, as she expected their carriage is only half full, the seats around them empty for now, businessmen and women keep to themselves, traveling alone and not raising their heads from the computers and tablets to make eye contact with the pair moving down the aisle, looking for their assigned seats. It's also the best way to travel keeping a low profile and, while the story of the clones has mostly been relegated to a follow up segment in the news, the doctor remains uninterested in bringing attention to Cosima.

Conceding the window seat to the small woman, she sits down and pulls the computer out of her bag. Having already informed Leekie's contact of the time of their arrival and agreed the place where they're supposed to meet, there's nothing left to do.

They don't talk much, Cosima occasionally asking questions about what she's seeing through the window and Delphine answers them with a small smile, but other than that, the journey is quiet. Maybe it's because she's tired or that the monotonous work of reviewing lab reports is not enough to entertain her mind, but the doctor catches herself distractedly looking at Cosima, whose eyes are locked outside and has a little smirk on her lips, only to force her own eyes back to her work.

"This is pretty amazing," Cosima comments in a low voice when she catches Delphine looking.

The blonde nods and smiles herself. "It is," she agrees.

Cosima sighs softly, her enthusiasm falters for a moment. "I didn't mean to be so judgemental," she says in a gentle tone. "But you throw something like that at me the way you did and I'm gonna push back."

The subject comes out of nowhere, but Delphine can't say that she's surprised that the clone has decided to brought it up. More interesting is that she immediately understands what Cosima's referring to. Perhaps is because Delphine herself feels that this is a conversation they need to have, clear the air between the two of them, talk honestly about their situation.

Delphine breaths out and shuts the laptop on the small tray table in front of her. "Would your reaction be so different if I'd done it more... tactfully?"

A corner of Cosima's mouth curls upwards as she frowns as she considers the question. "I really don't know," she answers. "Maybe... But you can't possibly believe that you've handled that well."

"No, I didn't," Delphine admits with a nod. "But it's not like you gave me the opportunity to say a whole lot since you had arrived. You were very... aggressive."

Cosima shamelessly smirks, the tip of her tongue poking out between her lips mischievously. "Yeah, I guess," she chuckles. "But you could've told me back in LA."

Delphine slowly shakes her head in disagreement. "We can be here all day talking about how each of us fucked up, but that wouldn't change where we are now. What's done is done, nothing will change that," she shrugs, her voice calm, trying to appraise the situation with a leveled head. "So, yes... I should've told you when we first met, but, to be honest, I don't regret that I didn't. I am, however, sorry if you feel that way. At the time I thought it was harmless, that we both knew what we were getting from it, I mean... it's not like you didn't know I'd be leaving the next day, the same way I know how that you'll be gone sooner rather than later.

"Perhaps it was selfish to leave you in the middle of the night," Delphine continues, talking as honestly as she allows herself to, her voice lowering even more, not entirely because of their venue, but because she feels her heart clench faintly. "And that's really the only thing I'd change if I could. I enjoyed it, I think you did too and there's nothing I would change about that," she concludes with a firm nod.

"I never said I regretted it," Cosima counters with little hesitation. "And maybe you're right. Had you told me back then about your... situation, I don't think it would've change anything. I don't know..." The clone whispers, as if talking to herself, stumbles just barely in her thoughts. "It's just that... I had this plan in my head," she stops and smirks, but it really doesn't reach her eyes. "I thought I could do the same to you."

Delphine looks at her with knit brows, confused. " What do you mean?"

The American swallows thickly, but her stare doesn't leave the blonde's. "Give you the fuck of your life and then ditch you in the middle of the night," she says bluntly.

Cosima pauses to let her words sink in, carefully watching Delphine's reaction. Even if she wasn't such a keen observer, like the doctor believes she is, Cosima could easily pick up the other woman's response. Her crimson cheeks and slightly open mouth, that she closes for her tongue to swipe over her own lips are a clear sign of how she feels about that. Delphine's gut coils, her body instinctively leans into Cosima's personal space, the armrest between the two women is the only impediment to a closer contact. The Frenchwoman knows that this reaction is undeserving, that if rationality ruled her mind, she should recoil in anger or, at the very least, annoyance. However she can't help the images that fill her head, brief flashbacks to her encounter with Cosima, remains of the thrill she felt all those months ago creeps under her skin. Images that she fought hard to keep in her subconsciente resurface with a strength she had not anticipated.

"Yeah..." the brunette breaths out, grinning pretentiously, entirely aware of the effect her words caused. "But you had to have this gorgeous girlfriend and my plan went up in flames," she says in a stronger voice. "So, you see, I was really pissed.

"Not that Sarah and the others were aware of it," Cosima continues casually, gesturing lively with her hands, ignoring the way Delphine's still staring at her with longing in darkened hazel eyes. "But I didn't force the issue when they thought it would be a good idea for me to use our past to get the information we wanted from you."

The blonde doesn't doubt a word Cosima's saying, in her still stunned mind puzzle pieces are starting to come together. How Cosima didn't seem interested in calling her out on the way she behaved; how the clone seemed so determined and, yes, aggressive in the way she approached her. Part of her feels betrayed, angry even, at Cosima's attempt to use her again after Delphine has clearly stated that they didn't need to lie to her, that she was open to the idea of helping the clones.

"You didn't have to do that, you know." It's to the last thought that Delphine hangs on to, keeping the emotional sides of her considerations to herself. "I've told you in the past that..."

"I know, I know..." Cosima waves her hands dismissively. "You're not getting it: I _wanted_ to do that. Even if just asking would get us what we needed, that's not how I wanted things to go down," she clarifies. "And I know it's stupid - I knew then - but it didn't matter. Every time I played in my head how our reunion would happen, if there was ever to be one, this is what I wanted."

"To pay me back," Delphine deduces, forcing her tone to remain neutral.

"Yes, childish, I know," Cosima shrugs. "But yeah..."

"Do you still what that?" The blonde asks, genuinely curious.

"I don't know. Truth is, I don't even know if I could've done it in the first place," the small woman admits and chuckles lightly. "But boy... did I want to..."

"You think that would make you feel any better?" There's a hint of sadness in Delphine's voice, a speckle of regret that makes her heart clench a little. For whatever reason she loathes the idea of Cosima's going through with that, not for herself, but because she fears that it would somehow taint the adorable woman's character.

Cosima's shrugs again. "Probably not," she whispers, her eyes lowered to her hands, playing with a ring. "Probably would make me feel worse."

"It would," Delphine confirms and pauses for a long sigh. "It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do," she's compelled to admit, refusing to tackle the question of whether she's going too far in her admission of guilt. "And it doesn't get any better for a long time, only worse. Only when you're finally able to convince yourself that it was for the best can you rest your conscience.

"Truth is, I didn't know how I could face you in the morning," she goes on, reaching for one of Cosima's hands and pull it to her side, watching as the brunette laces their fingers. "I didn't know how I could say goodbye," she laughs sadly. "I'm terrible at those things."

Cosima's quiet for a while, her fingers toying around Delphine's hand with a distant smile on her lips. "You know... you're the queen of mixed signals," she finally says, raising her eyes to the blonde and showing her a crooked smirk.

Delphine smiles and nods in understanding. "I'm sorry," she says. "But... the way I feel for you... it's independent of my feelings for Claire. They're two separated emotions, you know?" She tries to explain in simpler terms the way she works.

"How you feel about me..." Cosima's coaxes, brows raised with an expectant expression.

The doctor takes a deep breath. "I like you, Cosima," she says with simplicity. "I want you, I want to be with you..."

"But only for now," the clone cuts her off, trying to pull her hand back.

"No, no..." Delphine holds her hand tighter, maintaining the contact. "It's... different," she says the last word slowly, thinking aloud. "Maybe we could work or maybe I'd find myself missing my old life, being miserable and make you miserable at the same time," she shakes her head. "I don't want that for you, Cosima. I don't want us to wake up one day unhappy and hating each other.

"Claire understands me," Delphine continues, her own fingers grazing along the Cosima's digits. "We're the same and that why we work so well together. We know what to expect from each other and what we can get in return."

"And you don't want to risk that," Cosima's voice is low. "You don't think we're worth it to throw it all away."

"If that means there's a possibility of you being unhappy..."

"Oh, please!" The clone interrupts abruptly and tugs her hand more forcefully, making them lose contact. "Don't pretend this is for my own good. That you're doing this because you care about me, about my feelings, about my future," she says quickly, her voice raising a little until she catches herself. "You're being selfish and weak. You're choosing certainty, conformism over the unknown," Cosima's continues in a hushed tone. "You what safety!"

"What if I do? What's so wrong about that?" Delphine answers in a frustrated whisper. "So what if I'm not willing to risk all that I've got now: a comfortable life, an understanding relationship,to be with you? I know that makes me a coward, but you don't know what it's like to be afraid of never finding someone who really gets you and takes you for what you are."

Cosima's looks out the window again, her chest rises and falls with every deep breath she takes to calm herself and not let her anger overpower her.

"You can't be loyal. Is that what you're saying?" She asks, her stare still out the window.

Delphine shakes her head, even if the other woman can't see it. "I can be loyal, just... in my own way," she explains.

Cosima's turns her face back to Delphine and gives her a dubious look. The blonde understands her doubts, she knows that the approach she has to intimate relationships is unorthodox and not everyone is able to comprehend it, but, for no valid reason, she thought the clone would. Not that she expected Cosima to follow in her steps, but she read the brunette as someone with an open mind and surely wasn't expecting so much judgemental on her part. Perhaps if it wasn't so close to home, if this discussion was held in the realm of conjectures, theoretically, maybe then Cosima could understand.

"Do you really find so unbelievable what I'm saying?" Delphine asks curiously.

Cosima thinks for a while, carefully pondering the question, the flames of anger apparently calmer for now. "No, not really," she answers, shaking her head. "I just don't like the idea that it's you," she continues, speaking honestly. "That probably makes me an hypocrite, right? I understand what you're saying and I don't entirely disagree, but..." she breathes out a long sigh. "But I don't see how someone would want to share you with other people."

"It's just my body, Cosima," Delphine replies matter-of-factually. "I'm more than that."

"Is that all?" The clone pushes, frowning. "When we were together... was that all it meant to you?"

Delphine is caught off guard by the question, even if she should've seen it coming when they started going down this road; everything leads back to them, to their own history. She should've known that something like this would come up and she should've prevented this conversation to go this far. She doesn't want to admit that no one has made her put in question her life decisions, the path she chose - not until Cosima barged into her life. If she was to leave Claire for anyone, it would be Cosima; of that she's sure. So, no, being with Cosima was more than that, the connection she felt, still feels, is larger than a night when she gave into lust, the call of her desire to satisfy her body's hunger.

The doctor finds herself in a difficult position. She doesn't want to disclose the whole truth, but she also can't bring herself to make her life much easier by blatantly lie to Cosima. Not only because the two of them still have to work together and saying that it meant nothing would make the tension between the two women reach unbearable heights, but also because Delphine knows Cosima deserves more than that.

"If the circumstances were different," the blonde starts slowly, but stops and struggles to find the right words.

"That really doesn't answer my question," Cosima scolds and breaks their eye contact, shaking her head and raising her hands between them. "You know what... Never mind! I don't think I want to know the answer either way."

Delphine breaths out, selfishly feeling glad that she's let off the hook. What good will it do to dabble in alternative realities.

They remain quiet the rest of the trip. Cosima resorted to look back out the window with a grimace and Delphine returning to her work. Or trying to. Instead she stares blankly at the computer screen, in her mind the conversation being replayed, wondering where she could've stopped it before it got so complicated.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sure you'll find some mistakes in here and for that I'm sorry.

A heavy silence occupies the space between the two women. Cosima barely said more than two words to Delphine, who feels the tension grow as time passes without so much a glance in her way. The clone seems determined to keep a physical distance walking two steps ahead. The doctor understands this need, at this point Cosima probably would want nothing more than to be alone and Delphine wishes she could give her that, she really does, but it's impossible.

While the taxi has left them near the small café where the meeting is to take place and Cosima is completely lost. It saddens Delphine that Cosima is too worked up to really enjoy Brussels, which is one of her own favourite cities. She does what she can to make this a pleasant experience, the weather is lovely, the spring afternoon sunny and warm, the gentle breeze rustles the leaves of the trees along the small Avenue Seghers. But the small woman has a closed expression, a blank stare fixed on the swarm of tourists walking beside them.

When the place comes into view Delphine reaches a hand out to Cosima, softly taking a wrist that is immediately pulled away, a hard stare meeting the blonde's eyes.

"We're here," Delphine says quietly, swallowing the sadness the rejection caused.

Cosima just nods, stubbornly quiet, she follows the doctor, this time one step behind.

Delphine instantly spots their contact, the discretion Leekie gave making easy to identify the Russian hacker. The shaved head and long bearded middle aged man is sat at a table outside the café, a beer mug half empty set in front of him indicates he's been there for a while. Cosima spots him as well and speeds up the pace to take the chair directly in front of him.

"You're Leekie's contact?" She asks at once, Delphine still pulling a chair between the two of them.

"Kasparov, at your disposal," the man says in a heavy Russian accent.

"Sorry, I can't call you that in good faith!" Cosima is being too confrontational, intentionally trying to upset their contact.

"Play your cards well and you can call me anything you want." A lewd gaze moves shamelessly along the clone's body. "Are all of you so... charming?"

Despite the man's vulgar comment, Cosima doesn't seem intimidated. "Keep it in your pants, creep," she says. "I know now what you have in common with Leekie: you're both perves."

The Russian laughs. "Oh, you need to relax. Perhaps a beer would do the trick. You should try one of these," he aims a finger with badly bitten nails at his glass. "Much better than that piss Americans insist on calling beer."

"Do you have it?" Delphine interrupts before the conversation gets out of hand.

"Well, of course I do!" He leans back in his chair. "But the two of you must ask much more nicely."

Cosima body grows stiff, her expression hardens. "Listen, you piece of shit, we don't have time to play nice, so either you give us what we came all this way for or..."

"Or what?" The hacker raises a brow, amusement dances in his eyes. He's enjoying all the attention and Cosima is blindly walking into his trap.

"I'm sure you've already been generously compensated for your work, otherwise you wouldn't have bothered to come," the Frenchwoman says in a much pacifying tone. "We have a train to catch and we really don't have time for this."

"Yeah..." Cosima chips in, taking Delphine's cue and sounding a little more calm. "So give us that shit and we can like... pay for your beer that's definitely better than America's piss."

"You know... this is what I don't like in you _Americans_ ," he spits the last word, the accent pressing harder on it. "You are too rude and you don't know how to enjoy life."

"Yes, we are obnoxious as fuck!" Finally a smile reaches Cosima's lips as she makes a point not to disappoint the Russian's assumptions.

" _Da_ , that's why the world doesn't like you very much," the man comments as he pulls a large bag to his lap and opens the zipper.

The two women stare at the device carelessly placed on the table in front of them. It's a black box with a small led light and a cable, presumably to connect to the security system.

"How does it work?" Delphine picks it up and turns it this way and that in her hands.

"It processes hundreds of thousands of algorithms in a second, scans the coding in the security system to break it, but doesn't leave a trail," the Russian speaks of it as a proud father talking about his prodigious child. "It's like nothing happened!"

"Yeah, that's great!" Cosima says with fake enthusiasm. "But we were wondering about the more practical aspect of the thing, like how do we plug it in and where."

"Oh..." He blinks a few times, with his stare on Cosima as if it didn't occur to him that their question was that obvious. "Well, it's simple really. Any security system terminal has a small port beneath it, sometimes it could be concealed by a tiny door, so bring a screwdriver," he explains, a hand reaches for the cord dangling from the small box in Delphine's hands. "Just plug the cable in there. It will track the code back to the mainframe and crack it. You're basically in possession of a master key; all doors can be unlocked with this."

"And you're certain of that?" Delphine inquiries, doubtfully looking at the piece of equipment in her hands, no bigger than a common smartphone.

"Of course I am!" He sounds incredibly offended that she has questioned his abilities.

"What about the cameras?" Cosima asks.

"I can't do anything about those." The Russian shrugs. "Maybe try some ski masks."

Delphine snorts despite the annoying look she sees on the other woman's expression.

"This is not funny, Delphine," Cosima rebukes her after the Russian left them without another word.

"Oh c'mon.. it's a bit funny..." The doctor tries to ease the tension, putting the device in her purse.

"I don't think you're taking this seriously enough." Cosima crosses her arms over her chest and scowls. "If we get caught..."

"Cosima, there's nothing we can do about it," Delphine says. "May as well be able to see the humour in this while we can. Jeez, maybe the creepy Russian was right about Americans."

"You can lose your job!" The clone's hands move widely, stunned by the Frenchwoman's light approach to the situation. "And that is the best case scenario."

"I know that." Delphine nods, her attention moving to the waiter walking to their table.

"Pardon, mademoiselles, mais..." The young man looks slightly embarrassed. "La bière... Il n'a pas payé."

Delphine waves a hand. "Nous prenons soin d'elle," she says. "Et apportez deux autres."

Relief crosses the waiter's young face and he gives a curt nod, quickly retreating.

"What was that?" Cosima asks, confused.

"The jerk didn't pay for his beer," Delphine explains, laughing again to Cosima's dismay. "And I ordered one for each of us... You do need to relax."

"You can be a real ashole, you know that?" The American continues to frown.

"And you can be a real downer," the blonde argues, her amusement grows at the same rate Cosima's annoyance increases.

The same young man arriving with two beer mugs cuts short Cosima's protest attempt. Immediately Delphine brings one of the mugs to her lips for a generous first taste.

"Much better than American piss," she says with an exaggerated Russian accent, winking at Cosima.

"Asshole!" The brunette complains again, half-heartedly this time, while trying to hide a smile.

Delphine allows herself to expel a content sigh, staring softly at Cosima, who takes a sway at the beer, her eyes drifting to the large square a street down from them and catching a glimpse of Basilique Nationale du Sacré-Cœur à Koekelberg, swarming with tourists. She tries to reach for the clone's hand closer to herself, casually resting on the arm of the chair. Not being faced with the early rejection, she squeezes the hand gently on her own, under Cosima's curious gaze.

"Can't we just enjoy the peace while we have it?" She asks in a quiet, tentative voice.

Cosima breaths in and out deeply once, before giving one small nod. "Yeah... I guess we better."

The doctor's weak smile widens when she feels the other woman's fingers wrap around her own, Cosima's lips returning the smile as her body leans closer to Delphine's.

They really don't have much time, but Delphine insists on taking Cosima on a small walk in Parc Elisabeth after they left the café and pay for the three beers. It's one of her favourites and every time she comes to Brussels and has a moment to spare, she strolls around it, curious about the people from all over the World who come together in the heart of Europe. It always brings her back to when she was a young girl and the world was filled with expectations that she was excited to meet. She remembers when she, after leaving school at the end of the day, would rush to any of the many parks around her native Paris, trying to listen to strangers' conversations, attempting to identify their origins, cataloguing countries she wanted to visit. Unthinkably, she shares this with the woman beside her, who seems to drinking ever words.

Cosima tells her that she's planning a trip after she's finally done with school, her thesis on its later stages and only a few months separate the clone from her doctorate. She confides in Delphine that she has no idea what to do with her life after she's done, a fear of seeing herself without a real purpose, a mission.

"Maybe I should apply to DYAD," Cosima jokes, "if the offer still stands."

Delphine laughs. "Maybe wait to see if we don't get caught breaking into their secret facilities."

"Yes, that's probably a good idea."

They try to keep it casual, just two friends - or even potential lovers - enjoying a pleasant afternoon in the park. But, at least to Delphine, there's always the knowledge of their impending trials in the back of her head, the added weight in her purse, caused by the technological device, is a constant reminder of it.

Cosima quickly drifts off to sleep when the train starts the journey back to Paris, her head lolled to rest on Delphine's shoulder, who just as quickly abandons all ideas of taking the time to work and closes her eyes. She doesn't sleep though, her mind won't let her. Contrary to what Cosima believes, she's well aware of the problems she will have to face if they're discovered, wondering herself what will she do with her life if it happens. Delphine will be forced to find another job, at least, and who would hire her after she's been burned by DYAD, a multinational corporation? Even if their reputation in the scientific community has seen better days, no one will risk taking her in after such a breach of trust. She needs a plan B, in case she's caught, Delphine needs to find a way to secure her future.

The only thing that comes to mind is using whatever Leekie has asked her to retrieve from Marion's office. The young doctor suspects it's something her former mentor could use as leverage to deal with the new head of DYAD. And what's good for Leekie could very well be useful to her. A safety net, only to be used if absolutely necessary.

Of course, first she needs to know what it is.

They stop on the way home for some Chinese take away, the trip has taken so much from both of them that Delphine is confident the night will be calm, without any of the usual bickering Cosima has subjected her to in the past days. And she's right. The clone seems calm, the storm has passed or at least eased up. The two women share the food, a bottle of wine set on the floor, near the couch where it could be easily reached to refill the glasses. With the food and wine comes easy conversation, Cosima excitedly explains her thesis to Delphine and the doctor offers her opinion. It's friendly and comfortable, something that neither of the two of them experienced when together. The clones' complication is forgotten for a moment.

Night falls and the food is gone, but they continue to talk, emptying the bottle of fresh white wine which keeps them company in the warm night.

Eventually Delphine gets up, stretches her back and announces that she needs a shower to wash away the journey. When she re-emerges from the bathroom, her muscles loosened from the hot shower, a long t-shirt over her torso and a small towel wrapping her hair, Cosima follows suit, entering the bathroom and closing the door quietly behind her.

Delphine's sat on the bed, her back resting against a couple of pillows, the laptop on her knees while she replies to a few emails her staff has sent her during the day. When she's finished, she raises her head to find Cosima leaning on the doorframe of her bedroom, watching her intently, biting the inside of her cheek, with nothing but a towel around her small body.

She walks with slow steps to the bed and doesn't say a word when she reaches the blonde, closing the laptop and placing it on a dresser.

"You're not gonna make me sleep on that uncomfortable couch again, are you?" Cosima's voice is enticingly low as she moves to position herself to straddle Delphine's lap.

Delphine adjusts herself, straightening her back against the pillows and grasping the hips shifting on top of her. "I won't make you, but I'll understand if that's what you want." She gives Cosima an out, trying to, as subtly as she knows how, imply that this won't change anything.

The brunette nods slowly while her hands search for the hem of Delphine's large shirt and pulls it without pause. "I think I want to enjoy peace while we have it," she whispers next to the blonde's lips when she drops the shirt on the floor. "Especially since you've accused me of being a bore."

Delphine laughs. "Struck a chord there, didn't I?"

With the back of a hand, she gently brushes a few dreadlocks over Cosima's shoulder and kisses the soft skin in front of her, wrapping that same hand on the smaller woman's neck as the other moves to easily release the knot on the towel that falls around Cosima's waist.

"I am _not_ boring!" Cosima counters, and to make her massage clear, she moves both her hands to fondle Delphine's breasts.

The doctor laughs again, but it's strained this time, the fingers sinking in her flesh and rolling on her nipples cause her to release a small hiss. She cranes her neck, her mouth looking for lips to latch on to, but finding only a teasing brush as Cosima pulls back just barely out of reach. Slightly frustrated for being denied, she uses the hand on the back of the American's neck to tug her to her mouth, the other hand grips tensely on Cosima's waist.

The kiss is gentle despite both women's hands eagerly feel for the territory they explore, their mouths move softly on one another as the two of them keep the urge they feel contained. Their tongues touch almost tenderly, smoothly gliding along the tender flesh of their lips, glide against each other and the tension in their bodies grow. Cosima starts to grind against Delphine, whose hands are now pressing harder, nails lightly scratch the satin skin on the other woman's lower back, before she moved them lower and palms the swell of her ass. Cosima gasps, encouraged by the touch, she rises to her knees, her hands abandon Delphine's breasts and immediately fist the golden curls, still damp from the shower and her mouth finally plunges for a deep kiss, hovering over the Frenchwoman.

It only lasts a moment though. A soon as Cosima feels Delphine's hands move to her inner thighs and smooth their way up, she pulls back, a smirk on her lips and her eyes sparkling with wicked intention. The brunette moves back, Delphine's protest is silenced by a finger skimming over her lips and a shake of the dreadlocked head.

"Lay back," Cosima instructs in a soft voice, her smile grows larger when the tip of her finger is lightly bitten.

Curious about what the clone has in mind, Delphine complies, her body fully stretched on the bed. Cosima's body moves over hers, the fingers of both her hands are laced by Cosima's as she brings her arms up until their resting on the pillow, framing her blonde locks. The small woman releases her, big brown eyes travel along her torso while Cosima bites the corner of her lower lip.

"Stay!" Cosima says in a stronger tone, her stare pinned on Delphine with an intensity that means she's not joking.

A small smile appears on the doctor's lips, but she nods, watching Cosima move down again, her hands maintain a light contact with Delphine's body, they glide along her neck, fingertips brush over the collarbone, smoothly, a whisper of a touch, but Delphine's body responds eagerly, her waist grounds down, the pressure between her legs rise despite the gentleness of the attention. When Cosima's fingers reach her chest, she keeps the same easiness, grazing delicately the outer shape of Delphine's breasts, only the thumbs search the hardened skin of the nipples and circle them, the pads of the fingers flick the small nubs in a tantalizing slow motion.

"Cosima..." Delphine groans with impatience, her waist surges upwards suddenly.

The clone's stare goes back to Delphine's face, leaving the area that she was reverently worshiping, but she doesn't address the doctor's complaint, only smiles.

The soft touch moved lower, fingertips trailing fire down Delphine's ivory skin, branding her hipbone with the softest of touches and the blonde's body responds to the calling, stirring beneath the small form. Her lips receive the gentle kiss Cosima grants her, but it's just a teasing brush to her needy flesh, moving lower far too soon, but keeping the contact. It was all a distraction, Delphine realises when one hand slips between her legs and robs her of her breath. Her waist rocks upwards, even if the touch is gentle, as light as the kiss, a single finger rolls smoothly over her panties is enough to create havoc in her entire being. She groans, loses enough patience to break her promise and no longer be a passive spectator while Cosima causes her to spiral out of control. Both her hands blindly search for Cosima's head, pulling her to her starving mouth and kisses her hard, her tongue invades without invitation and if the clone minds, she does nothing to put an end to it. She returns her hungry kiss, the hand between Delphine's legs cups her fully, eagerly, even over the fabric is enough stimulation to make the blonde's body jerk energetically towards the touch.

Cosima loses all the deliberate intention behind her actions, she moves fast to rid Delphine of her panties, only to immediately cover the lithe body with hers.

"Allez, Cosima!" The blonde urges, her hands pull at Cosima's waist.

Two fingers can't sink inside Delphine fast enough, her back arches languidly, with her free hand Cosima holds herself over the other woman, her stare pins Delphine on the bed, hungry eyes sweep the from beneath her, moving with her, grinding against the hand thrusting into Delphine's depths. The doctor moves quickly to cup Cosima's breast, greedy fingers fondle the supple flesh, another hand remains low on the body, finding equally delightful skin on the mound of the brunette's ass.

Cosima moans loudly just before her mouth delivers a punishing kiss, her digits working hard, sliding in and out of Delphine, touching everything on their path. It's too much, too fast, Cosima's experienced digits are quickly guiding her to completion, the climax approaching with the rapid motion of the other woman's hand.

The clone can feel it as well, she has to, the loss of control of Delphine's hips give her away, the breathy moans she releases leaving no room for doubts. Her last line of defense comes down when Cosima, pulls herself up, her left hand quickly reaches for Delphine's left leg and lifts it to her waist and slows the pace suddenly. The strokes of her fingers lose the fast pace but gain in intention and depth. It crosses Delphine's mind that Cosima might be trying to make a point, the brunette's stare is bright on hers, shining with determination as she sinks her fingers as deep as they go and curves them on the way out, hitting Delphine in all the right spots. She doesn't have to, Delphine wants to state, she knows she's already in too deep for this to be something the doctor won't regret later. Not that she can stop it, not that she wants to stop it, not when she's raising herself from the bed and circles her arms around Cosima, crushing the small body against her own as she feels the intense thunder shaking her body followed by the quake of her entire being.

"Cosima, mon amour..." It slips out of her in a whisper, with her head buried in Cosima's neck as she journeys back from her high.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: okay… well, sorry for the long wait, but this sort of chapters always take a little longer than the plot centered ones… oh, btw… totally NSFW… like the whole thing, not an inkling of plot in here. Enjoy!  
> Also, all mistakes are my own… blah, blah, blah… you know the deal :D

Delphine takes her time before she gathers the courage to meet Cosima's eyes. She's not sure what to make of what she sees. With her eyes open, staring at the wall in front of her, directly behind the head of the bed, Cosima's expression reveals nothing. But she moves, her arms drop to her side, before she pushes herself out of the bed.

"Don't worry about it," the clone says in an extremely casual voice, crossing the threshold of the bedroom and into the living room, "I know you don't mean anything by that."

Delphine watches her for a while as the clone gets into the kitchen and thinks again of a way to make it better without going too far, without sounding too forceful. Even though every single attempt at this has been a complete failure, making things worse, constantly her eagerness to appease the clone's mind has been misinterpreted as an attempt on Cosima's self interests, instead of improving their relationship. Even so, she can't tell the truth, Delphine can't confess that even if it's not love, her feelings for Cosima certainly are much deeper than they should, because that will only open an opportunity for another debate that will lead nowhere, simply because neither of them is receptive for a change of heart in that matter.

She gets up, following the other woman's steps and into the kitchen where Cosima is rinsing her hands and reaching the overhead cupboard for a glass that she fills with water and drinks in big swallows. Delphine knows that Cosima is aware of her presence and chooses not to look at her. She can't blame her, had the doctor been in the American's position she wouldn't be happy either. Delphine bites her lips, her eyes roam the clones well toned back, her mind assessing her options, but finding none that pleases her. She gets closer to Cosima, not trying to be sneaky, but moving slowly, giving the opportunity for Cosima to make her stop, but she doesn't move from her place, Cosima hardly reacts when Delphine delicately reaches for her hips and gently presses her front to the brunette's back. Cosima's only movement is the deep intake of air, her chest rises and falls more noticeably.

Delphine does the only thing she thinks she can. Hiding her shortcomings by satiating the longing she knows resides in Cosima. This is the only thing she's sure of, the only oath she knows she can keep and will be well received. It's the coward's way out, she knows it, but it's the only answer her mind gives her when Delphine asks herself what to do next.

Delphine brushes her lips over Cosima's shoulder, slowly, easily and the other woman inhales deeply again, her right hand raising to the back of the doctor's neck, pulling her closer. Yes, this Delphine can do, it's natural, effortless between the two of them. Cosima extends her neck, tilts her head to the side and Delphine explores with her lips, with her tongue, savouring the warm skin made at her disposal, her hands smooth along the clone's hipbone, reaching her front and tugs her closer. Cosima's body melts into hers, the perfect fit, the left hand reaches for Delphine's, guiding it lower to discover the inviting wetness between her legs.

The touch is soft, gentle, just enough to wrap the tip of her fingers in aroused flesh and yet it's enough to twist Delphine's guts, to make her moan in delight at the feel, to propel her desire to new heights, to tempt her further. Her breath hitches when Cosima presses herself more deliberately against her, starting to sway her hips subtly, luring Delphine's touch. But the blonde holds her ground, even if she feels the beating of her heart growing increasingly faster, a tightness in her throat from the barely contained ache. The only movement she makes is the right hand creeping up, discreetly until it finds the tender flesh of Cosima's breast, that she cups in a gentle fondle, nesting it on the palm of her hand.

Cosima groans, her body jerks, leaning against the taller form behind her. Pressing Delphine against herself with her hand on top of the blonde's, growing restless with the slow tease. The Frenchwoman bucks her waist forward, her sex snuggling against Cosima's ass and both her hands grip tighter, around the small woman's breast, the fingers of her left hand twitching with a more defined intent against wet skin.

Cosima moves her head, lips brush gently along Delphine's jawline, breathing heavily and her hips grind against the blonde, luring her further. The hand between her legs goes up as well, finding blonde curls to pull Delphine's mouth to hers. The kiss is open, fueled by lust, her tongue searches for Delphine's, gliding along it, her teeth grazing and tugging the blonde's lower lip.

It's quick and unexpected when the American turns in her arms, pulls her head down and presses herself up, rising a few inches when she goes to the tip of her toes. The kiss gains energy, gone are the soft touches, the deliberate intentions, Cosima's hand lowers to palm a breast roughly, while the other fists golden locks and Delphine trails behind, struggling to maintain some composure. Both her hands drop to Cosima's backside, settling just under the swell of her ass, tugging the small body to herself. Her muscles taut as she forces them around, spinning on themselves and giving a couple of steps forward. With a solid grip she lifts Cosima's body to the high kitchen table, the young scientist gasps when her hot skin makes contact with the cold, hard surface, but doesn't miss a beat, hands grasping the blonde's lithe waist, opening her thighs to make room for her, while her legs wrap around Delphine's.

Delphine can feel Cosima's slick want gliding along her navel, calling for her while they kiss carelessly, tongues twist around each other, lips are sucked and pulled eagerly. The American buries her hands in Delphine's hair again, but pushes her back, breaking the kiss, only to guide the doctor's lips to her neck and lower still, encouraging Delphine to taste the soft skin of her collarbone. Delphine raises her hands, cupping both Cosima's breasts and when her mouth finds a firm nipple and swirls her tongue around it, it's of her own initiative, even if Cosima's hands continue to hold her there, arching her back to the reverent tongue.

"Keep going, Delphine," Cosima groans in a broken voice, her hands pushing the blonde lower.

It's the first words she mutters since she so hastily abandoned Delphine's bed and, while the encouragement is not exactly surprising, given the circumstances, is enough to fill the Frenchwoman with some sense of accomplishment. The two of them might not have much and certainly won't be for long, but they have this. This connection, inexplicably deeper than a mere physical understanding, but an emotional one as well.

Delphine is fast to drop her hands to Cosima's waist, lifting her suddenly and carrying her backwards to give them both a more comfortable position. Blinded by an unstoppable urge, she spreads Cosima's legs wide open, the other woman pushes her down, her hips rise in an attempt to waste as little time as possible.

"Fuck!" Cosima moans loud at Delphine's tongue first contact with heated skin, dragging it between swollen folds.

Cosima's grip on her head doesn't relent, pushing Delphine down with unrestrained desire, the hips sway upwards, riding the tongue deliciously buried in her sex, creating nonsensical patterns. The blonde looks up, pausing for a moment and dropping kisses along Cosima's hipbone, who shows her an exasperated expression and Delphine smiles to herself, resting a hand on Cosima's torso, trying to ease back the petite woman. The clone half concedes, leaning back slightly, with the free arm she supports herself behind her back, the hand curling at the edge of the table, but refuses to completely lose eye contact with the Frenchwoman, raising an insolent brow and pulling her back to continue with the pleasant task left unattended between her legs.

The smile persists on Delphine's lips even as they return to excited skin. Her left arm wraps around Cosima's right leg, raising it to rest on her shoulder, while the hand on the American's torso slides lower, resting on top of her abdomen, feeling the twist of the muscles when she runs the tongue through the length of her sex. Cosima's hips demanding thrusts are a constant and Delphine absorbs each one greedily, there's little softness in the sweeps of her tongue, licking over wet skin, circling around Cosima's entrance, pushing inside with a sudden motion, aided by the hand on the back of her head. Only when she's attending to Cosima's clit is Delphine gentler, brushing the sensitive nub, using the side of her tongue or flicking it with the tip of the strong muscle.

Cosima's soft moans rise in volume until she's panting harshly, groaning deeply and cursing between a clenched jaw. The rocking of her hips growing stronger, more erratic and finally she gives in. She releases Delphine's curls and finds the hand placed on her lower torso, taking it in her own and sliding it over her body until Delphine discovers the mound of a breast, palming it greedily under Cosima's tight grasp. She leaves it there as Cosima's grip returns to her head, preventing her from pulling back, her tongue no longer smooth on the collection of nerves, but pressing it with the deliberate intention of having the other woman crest in her mouth.

"Delphine… Fuck!" She hears in a rough voice as Cosima's body tenses suddenly and stops the thrusting completely.

She doesn't stop though. Delphine's tongue continues to move against spent flesh, the hand on the thigh grips harder, keeping the other woman opened to her exploring tongue, while her left hand continues to fondle the supple flesh of Cosima's breast.

Only when she feels Cosima's body giving up entirely, dropping to the hard surface behind her, does Delphine relent. Abandoning her place between the clone's legs, she straightens herself, running her hands over Cosima's side. The blonde smiles at the sight of Cosima laid on her back, eyes shut, still struggling for breath.

After the few seconds it takes for Cosima to regain her ground, she starts to chuckle, a carefree laugh that continues after she opens her eyes. Slightly confused, Delphine raises a brow, even as she takes the small woman in her arms when she returns to a sitting position.

"You just ate me out on the kitchen table," Cosima explains the cause of her laughter.

Delphine snorts, accepting the kiss Cosima extends to her. "And next I'm going to fuck you on the bed," she whispers next to Cosima's lips, picking her up and helping her hop down to the floor.

It causes the brunette to laugh deeper. "Going in for seconds?" Cosima asks mischievously, already walking back out the kitchen, flipping the lights off.

" _Oui, absolument_." Delphine nods, pushing the clone into the bedroom. "Think you can take it?" She smiles, eyes shinning not leaving Cosima, pressing her body to the other woman until she has her trapped, with nowhere to go but down and onto the bed.

"Yeah…" The clone smirks wickedly, keeping the playful tone of the exchange. "I mean… I can lose the ability to walk for a couple of hours, but it will be totally worth it."

"I'll be gentle," Delphine promises, while at the same time she practicality shoves Cosima to the bed with a push of her hand on the other woman chest.

Cosima continues to laugh, dragging herself back on the mattress to make room for Delphine as the blonde moves on top of her, dropping a lingering kiss on the brunette's lips, knuckles brushing over a check in a tender gesture.

She keeps her promise. The touch is soft when she explores Cosima's body, watching goosebumps rise on the smooth skin she roams, feeling the muscles ripple under her attention. Delphine lowers her head to kiss her again, strong hands going to her hips, but this time the hold is light and travels along her lower back, before one hand goes up to caress a breast.

Delphine can't keep the adoration from her gaze, watching as the petite woman smiles openly at her, a tongue poking between her teeth when their lips part, their foreheads pressed against each other and a quietness falls over them. The hand moves lower on the compact body, Delphine's careful with her touch, fingers brush lightly against still aching flesh, parting swollen folds but avoiding direct stimulation. Cosima's body need to regain strength, Delphine knows it and keeps the touch tender, giving the time the clone needs to comfortably accommodate more vigorous attention. Cosima sighs contently against the shell of Delphine's ear, when the blonde starts to trail kisses along her neck, lips soft, the caress of fingers easy, slow, unhurriedly coaxing renewed desire.

It seems to work. Cosima's hands tense against her waist, squeezing the breast in her hand more firmly. At the same time the brunette's hips start to rock, first leisurely, rippling lazily, but the pace is increasing, riding the fingers with more intensity, and she's the one who sets the pace of the thrusts. In time she's the one seeking fuller contact, sitting up and bringing Delphine with her, her arms around the taller woman, keeping them pressed together, her lips searching for the blonde's.

Delphine kisses her, the left arm wrapping Cosima's lower back, the fingers of the right hand being enveloped by the brunette's warmth, sinking in her depths, extracting more pleasure from the small woman as she thrusts into the two digits between her legs, circling her hips in a steadily growing rhythm. All Delphine does is keep up with the pace, tugging at Cosima's backside to help her keep the balance, but she's losing control. The Cosima's heavy breathing against her neck isn't helping and neither is her tongue rolling over the length of Delphine's neck or the teeth softly sinking in her shoulder with a groan.

Delphine doesn't mean to overpower the petite woman, she knows that's probably not what Cosima needs right now. The clone needs reassurance. That's what this night has been about - perhaps Cosima wants to prove she has a place in Delphine's heart, if not in her life. But the Frenchwoman is losing her grip on the events unfolding and with a loud groan, she pushes Cosima down on the bed, covers the small body with her own and presses a hard kiss on gasping lips.

Cosima doesn't seem to mind much though. After the initial surprise, she responds to the eager kiss, nipping at the blonde's lower lip. And when Delphine sinks her fingers quickly into her, Cosima places both her hands on the other woman's ass, tugging the longer frame to herself as her hips continue to thrust upwards, meeting the movements halfway.

Delphine can't stop the thrusting of her body, grinding against the leg that surreptitiously was raised between her thighs and instead of slowing her movements, it fastens their pace. Curling her digits inside Cosima and feeling the warm walls of her sex clasp around them.

"Oh… Delphine, don't stop," Cosima croaks in a weak voice, her fingers sinking in the supple flesh of Delphine's backside, grasping for something that'll keep her from falling.

"Merde!" Delphine expels, felling the other woman's thigh pressed deliciously against her move willfully to keep up with the pace of her thrusts.

Cosima resists the final push for a few strokes, but when she finally breaks Delphine feels the arousal pouring on the palm of her hand, her fingers coated with a warm wetness as Cosima's nails bite into her flesh and she releases a thick groan, hips rocking out of control.

Delphine lets her body drop on Cosima's, her forehead resting on her chest and slips out her fingers slowly, but other than that, they remain still, catching their breaths. More than a few minutes pass before either woman moves and when Cosima starts to graze her hands along Delphine's lower back is with a soft roll of her fingertips. The blonde sighs shakily, at last removing the hand that had possessively remained cupping Cosima's sex and resting it on the clone's hips.

It surprises her when Cosima is able to flip them over in a skillfully move, a huge smile on the brunette's lips that turns into a pretentious smirk when she wiggles her way between Delphine's legs. The Frenchwoman hisses slightly and involuntarily balances her hips in search of something more. Her body is tired but it craves the release of the strain Cosima has not-so-innocently built.

"It's late," she says, even as her hands move ahead to feel the smooth curve of Cosima's waist. "We should rest."

The American doesn't seem to care much about Delphine's half-hearted protest and drags her fingers over the pale torso that has started to rise and fall with Delphine's deepening breaths, the same wicked smile on her lips.

"You say that…" She prompts, sliding back on the blonde's body, making room for a hand to slip between them and close the argument with a finger tracing the evidence of Delphine's enthusiasm in prolonging the night.

The doctor chuckles, one hand moves up to pull Cosima to her lips. The list of things she'll regret later is growing impossibly long just in the past week. Staying up late in order to take whatever Cosima agrees to offer her won't make much of a difference at this point - it's Delphine's last coherent thought watching a dreadlocked head journey down her body and settle comfortably between her thighs.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I know this story keeps having very irregular updates. I try to work in it in-between my other stuff, but this keeps being pushed back. It's not that I don't like to write it - in fact I really enjoy writing "this" Delphine - it's simply because this is my "relax story", the one I'm suppose to write when I take a break from the others, except I rarely do... Again, I'm so so so sorry for taking so long, don't think I ever forget about it or that I don't plan to finish it.
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Delphine stares blankly at the computer screen, the email box open, but she's yet to click on any of the numerous messages awaiting her attention. The previous night had extended for too long - nothing she didn't predict - and she finds it hard to concentrate, despite the double dose of caffeine she has already put in her system. It was with difficulty she left the bed this morning, waking up with Cosima wrapped around her, mumbling a protest against the loud alarm that echoed through the small apartment. The doctor had turned it off, looking with jealousy to the petite woman stretching in her bed with a languorous smile.

"I'll be back at the end of the day," Delphine had whispered, leaning down to kiss Cosima's forehand and doing all she could not to disturb her.

"You're not coming for lunch?" The clone asked in a sleepy voice.

"No, I'll eat something there," she answered, pushing herself up the bed. "I suspect I'll have a lot to do today."

"Oh... Okay." Cosima's disappointment was noticeable even in a low tone.

"I'll try not to arrive too late," Delphine said on her way to the bathroom.

When she got back to the bedroom to pick up something to wear, Cosima had shifted on the bed, already back to sleep facedown and with a pillow over her head.

A knock on her office door makes her blink a few times and Claude is entering.

"Everything alright?" He asks, concern frowning his brows.

"Yes, yes..." She answers quickly, rearranging herself on the chair and clearing her voice. "What's the matter?" She asks when her assistant steps in and closes the door softly.

"Something is happening," he says, talking lowly and approaching her desk.

Delphine raises a brow. "What do you mean?"

Claude takes one of the chairs in front of her desk. "Top scientists were called to a meeting in the conference room on the top floor. Everyone who's been involved in the LEDA project, with the exception..."

"Of myself," she finishes for him, twisting her lips in discontent. "Because I've been cast aside."

He nods. "According to Diane, Marion's in the city and has called a meeting without warning," Claude reveals, referring to the assistant of one of the other scientists.

"Any idea what's this about?" She inquires, growing more restless.

"No clue." He shrugs.

"Thank you, Claude," she says with a weak smile. "Keep your eyes and ears open, see if you can find out more."

"Yes, don't worry." He winks at her, getting up and heading to the door.

Whatever is going on, Delphine knows it's not good. Marion arriving without notice, calling a meeting like that. The doctor wonders if they're onto her, but how could that be? They were careful, no one outside the clones' circle knows of Cosima staying back or of their plans to retrieve the cure.

She had hoped to delay the assignment until Friday evening or even the weekend, when she had more guarantees that they wouldn't run into someone who had decided to work late. Fridays are the best days to infiltrate DYAD - or so the doctor assumes -, people tend to go home early for the weekend. But this... If what she suspects is true, as she's almost sure it is, and this meeting is somehow relate to the clones, then she needs to act fast. Even if she doesn't know what this is about, it strikes her as more than a coincidence that this meeting was called so close to the clones departure and, not only that, the people who were summon and her own barring from the meeting only rises her suspensions.

Delphine's not an alarmist, not even close, but she can't ignore the signs in front of her. She must change her plans, even though she doesn't feel ready and neither is Cosima. This sort of operation requires careful planning, Delphine would've liked to have time to explain to the American the layout of the floor they're breaking into. It would certainly be helpful if the doctor had time to take at least one more round on the area they have to infiltrate, get a better notion of the placing of the security cameras and, possibly, find an alternative escape route other than the backdoor that's used by the delivery services directly into the kitchen.

One other thing that concerns her and Delphine has been thinking about since she talked to Leekie is the not-so-small detour she has to make to reach the top floor and break into Marion's office to retrieve the file that her old mentor has demanded. Both her and Cosima had somehow considered it a secondary task, but that doesn't mean it doesn't require some planning as well. The top floor, while not nearly as well guarded as the area where the cure is stored, is not exempt from the tight security the entire building is under. It too has security cameras, although in a much lesser number, as far as Delphine remembers from her several trips up there - first as Leekie's protégé and later when Marion has taken the young doctor under her wing. It seems like the high ranking scientists values their privacy a lot more than their security, at least in their private offices, where they receive only who they want.

As much as she hates to do this for Leekie, it's something she must. Delphine has no doubts the man will make good on his promise and, if she doesn't deliver, he'll break the silence and end her career. And even if, for some kind of miracle, Aldous backpedals on his threat, Delphine needs it for herself. It's her insurance policy, her warranty that if she's caught DYAD - or better, Marion - won't come after her. Delphine has absolutely no idea what the damn folder holds, but she knows she must have it.

Is with that thought in mind that, after a quick stop at the cafeteria for lunch, Delphine rides the elevator to the top floor, with two coffee cups in hand, assuming that the meeting didn't last past lunch hour. She walks slowly along the corridors that lead to Marion's office, her eyes subtly scanning the few security cameras placed along the walls. If they can make it to the cure, this should be a walk in the park.

Élise has been Marion's assistant as long as Delphine can remember. Stern and protective, the woman approaching retirement age never liked the blonde, young doctor and has no qualms about showing it.

"Is she in?" Delphine asks, getting close to the woman's desk.

"You don't have an appointment, Dr. Cormier," Élise says, without lifting her eyes to meet Delphine's.

"Could you just tell her I'm here?" The young woman tries not to roll her eyes, keeping her voice serene. "I'm sure Marion will have no problems telling you she can't receive me, if that's the case."

" _Dr. Bowels_  is a very busy woman." Eyes still locked on whatever she's seeing on the computer.

Élise only moves her eyes when the door for Marion's office opens and the woman peeks her head out.

"Élise, could you...?" She stops, smiling at Delphine.

"Coffee?" The blonde offers, raising the two cups she holds in her hands, with a smile on her lips.

"Perfect!" Marion holds the door open and waits until Delphine has taken a seat to shut it. "How did you know this is exactly what I need?" She sits on the chair next to Delphine, neglecting her own big, leather chair on the opposite side of the large desk and takes the coffee cup to her lips.

"A lucky guess." Delphine shrugs, her smile still pleasant. "I heard you've had a long morning."

"Then it wasn't a lucky guess, but an educated one." Marion crosses her legs and leans back, taking a generous swing of the drink, her eyes peering over the rim to meet the blonde's. "How did you know about the meeting?"

Delphine smirks. There are a lot of faults she can find in the other woman, but she always admired how Marion cut through the bullshit. "You know how people like to talk," the young doctor replies. "It's hard to keep secrets around here."

"You should know!" Marion raises an eyebrow and comments casually. "When your... inappropriate contact with one of the clones was known, I tried to fight for you, keep you in the project. But I was heavily outnumbered and they were very adamant."

Marion lies fluently - not that Delphine was expecting anything else. The blonde knows that if Marion has said anything when the board was discussing her future in the institute, it was not to defend Delphine's position, quite the opposite, possibly. Delphine signed her sentence before she took Cosima into her bed - no, Marion's mind was probably made up the moment she revealed her plans for Leekie and Delphine didn't immediately declare allegiance to her cause. Still, she plays along, appearances need to be kept, after all, and there's little advantage to fall prey to her emotions. In fact, what has Delphine curious is why would Marion brought up the subject of her relationship with Cosima. Perhaps it was because the issue was in the older scientist's mind - most likely from the meeting that took place in the morning.

"I know you did what you thought best," Delphine implies she knows the other woman is lying, but doesn't hold it against her; she's a lot more interested in finding out what happened this morning. "Office politics can be hard to swallow."

The older woman nods. "Leekie made many bad decisions when he was working for DYAD, but bringing you in was definitely not one of them." Marion says in a strong voice and with a restrained smile. "You have proven yourself a valued member of our team and we are lucky to keep counting you as one of our own."

The praise falls flat on Delphine; this is not what she's here for. Part of her is even offended: Marion has known her for years and should be aware that Delphine doesn't require to have her ego stroke. Despite being her mentor, this is not one of the characteristics she shares with Leekie.

"I appreciate it, Marion," she says nonetheless, even if she knows she's not fooling the other woman with her cold smile, nor is her intention to do so. "This is why I hope you don't cut me out of important decisions. You know I have the ambition of advance my career in the institute and, for that, I need not to be kept in the dark."

"Perhaps you should've thought of that before you decided to get  _intimate_ with one of the clones. What you do in your free time concerns you alone - until the moment it starts to interfere with your job." Marion's mask falters and shows a glimpse of her true self, but soon recovers. "Listen, Delphine, I have no intention to stagnate your career. I do want you to prosper here and I assure you that you'll be called to the table when big decisions are made.  _Except_ when it comes to the LEDA project; that's out of bounds to you."

Despite the other woman's words, Delphine smiles. "So the meeting  _was_ about the clones," she states, but Marion shows no signs of being caught off guard. "I'm just wondering what's left to talk about the LEDA project. Wasn't it shut down under your orders after Leekie was forced to step down?"

Marion's eyes become cold. "I like you, Delphine, but I think you're forgetting your place," she says in an icy voice. "Aldous was obsessed with his clones and if you follow his steps, you better be prepared to meet the same faith."

"There's no need for threats, Marion." Delphine remains calm and it shows on her voice. "I know that being left out of the project was my doing. I take full responsibility for that. And I understand why you did it." She doesn't bother any longer to pretend to believe Marion's frail attempt at deceiving her. "I was merely expressing my curiosity."

"We have a good relationship and I do think you have a bright future here at DYAD." Marion's back to be pleasantly polite. "Don't let mere curiosity ruin that for you."

"I don't pretend to," Delphine affirms with conviction, getting up. " I should let you get back to work before Élise comes in and kicks me out."

Marion laughs and stands up as well, walking her to the door. "We should have drinks some time soon," she says. "I feel like it's long overdue and we need to put all this clone nonsense behind us."

"Yes, we must." Delphine smiles and opens the door, not exactly thrilled about the prospect of spending a night drinking with a woman she's starting to despise.

There's a sense of urgency when Delphine walks out of the institute and gets into her car. She turns the keys on the ignition and the car's clock brightly indicates 17.23, too early for her to leave, but Delphine is in a hurry. At 6.30 she's parking close to her building.

"Hi..." Cosima's greeting dies in her lips when she looks at the blonde. "What's the matter?" She asks, getting up from the couch, where she was with the computer on her legs.

"We have a problem." It's Delphine's answer, setting the large paper bag she brought from the sports store on the coffee table and going to the bedroom for a change of clothes.

"You're not serious!" Cosima says after peering inside the bag. "I thought we had time... and this is a bad idea." She removes one of the ski masks from the bag, which also holds a dark and comfortable change of clothes for the clone that Delphine hopes it fits.

"We don't have time," the blonde states firmly, getting back to the living room and pulling a black shirt over her head. "And unless you got a better idea to cover our identities, start cutting holes in those things for our eyes."

The clone frowns, clearly surprised by seeing the other woman in such a state. "Wanna tell me what changed?"

"Marion's in town," Delphine says. "She called for a meeting, everyone involved in the LEDA project was present."

"I thought you were out of that!" Cosima sounds upset about it and the doctor suspects it has nothing to do with the meeting itself but with the wrong assumption that Delphine would still be a part of it.

"I am!" Delphine rolls her eyes, but she's too concerned to address her frustration about the clone's lack of trust. "But that doesn't mean I don't have other ways of knowing what is going on and try to protect you and the others... You're welcome, by the way!" She shows a glimpse of her annoyance.

"Whoa... Okay..." Cosima says quietly and carefully starts to approach the blonde, who has lighten up a cigarette and is moving back and forth in the small room. "Do you know what that was about?"

Delphine shakes her head and stops when Cosima bars her way. "No, but it's easy to assume that nothing good."

"You think they're onto us," the clone reads the other woman well. "And you're panicking."

"With good reason!" Delphine answers quickly; she's talking too quickly, she knows it, but she doesn't seem to be able to stop.

"Hey!" Cosima takes the blonde's hands into her own and looks her in the eyes. "What if you're wrong? What if it has nothing to do with us? We go in there unprepared and we get busted, whether or not they've made us."

"What do you propose, then?" Delphine asks in a calmer voice, crushing the cigarette on the ashtray.

"Okay... First of all, you need to sit down," Cosima says with a hint of a smile, guiding the doctor to the couch. "Now we think of a plan."

"I have a plan, I just didn't think we had to move so soon," Delphine says, reluctantly sitting down.

"Okay, let's hear it then," Cosima encourages.

The blonde thinks for a moment, observing Cosima casually laying on the couch, her head resting in its arm with her face directly turned to the blonde, pulling her legs to the doctor's lap. She throws her hand back and takes a deep breath, closing her eyes and her hands move to absently massage Cosima's calf muscle.

"I need to explain to you the layout of floors we're breaking into, which will be the forth, where the cure is and the fifteen, where Marion's office is." She says and hears a small whine from the other woman. "I know you don't like it, but we need to do what Leekie wants. Besides, the floor where the offices are is much less guarded."

"Yeah, I just don't feel comfortable doing something for the man who controlled all my life," Cosima counters. "If it was up to me he could rot in a prison."

"He's helping, Cosima. Sure, he's asking for something in return, but if it wasn't for him we couldn't do what you need." Delphine reasons with her.

"Okay, okay..." The American concedes with a roll of her wrist. "So, the layout and what else."

"The cameras are our biggest problem, if the dispositive we have actually works." The doctor continues. "The ski masks are a stupid idea, but we don't have a way to disable them. I've done some recon and there's no way we can avoid being spotted. At the end of the day, they'll find out they've been infiltrated and when they do an inventory, they'll know what was taken."

"Right! No matter how we pull this off, they'll know..." Cosima stops talking suddenly and her expression hardens. "They'll know it was you, or at least, you'll be at the top of the list."

Delphine nods. "It's a very likely possibly."

"You can't do this, Delphine." Cosima shakes her head vigorously. "You need to be as far from DYAD as possible when I get in, someplace where many people can see you."

"When  _you get in_?!" Delphine raises a brow, displeased with Cosima's implications.

The clone is quite for a long time, and the Frenchwoman can see the plan taking shape inside Cosima's mind, becoming more restless as minutes go by without a word from the other woman.

"Think about it, Delphine," Cosima says lowly, still thinking aloud. "They don't know I'm here. Fuck! My face is on many people, I don't even need to cover..."

"No! No!" Delphine's rejection of the plan is loud and determined. "I won't have you go in there alone! If something happens to you I don't... Sarah will have my head!"

"Sarah's not here and she doesn't need to know!" Cosima straightens her back and gets closer to the blonde. "You can't sacrifice your career for this, Delphine. I don't care what Sarah says, this is our flight. You get me inside, help me navigate the place, but I'll do it myself.

"Besides, if they know it was one of their clones who went inside and get a cure for our condition, well..." The brunette is starting to show a smile. "The possibility of them getting the authorities involved is very low. How are they gonna explain that they're not providing the cure to their mess? How do you think that will work for their reputation? Marion's trying to rebuilt the institute position in the scientific community, she won't risk something like this to get out. But if it was one of their scientists, that's a whole different story."

"You are making a lot of assumptions..." Delphine says, twisting her lips.

"That may be so, but it's better than you committing career suicide."

The clone presents her case with logic, Delphine has to admit that, but she's not at all on board with sending Cosima in there all by herself. If something goes wrong, the doctor will be too far away to give any real assistance. If the American is captured there's nothing Delphine can do to help.

"I don't like it," she says. "You going in alone is not the solution."

"And us both doing it with nothing but ski masks to cover our faces is?" Cosima continues to push, clearly having her mind made up. "If I get caught at least you still be outside and can work to get me out."

"I thought that was Beth's job," Delphine reminds her.

"Beth's all the way across the Atlantic, there's nothing she can do straightaway," the clone says. "Using her contacts should be our last resource."

"Like if both of us get captured," Delphine challenges.

"Exactly!" The American nods her head. "And the best way to prevent that is if only one of us goes in."

"And tell me again why should it be you?"

Cosima rolls her eyes, like it should be obvious. "Because I don't need a fucking mask!"

"So, your plan is to break into DYAD with your face discovered and that will guarantee us they won't come after you?" Delphine has to chuckle lightly at the prospect.

"They won't even know it's me," Cosima raises both her hands. "I cover my hair with one of those ski masks, take off my nose ring. Who am I?"

Delphine smiles and takes the American's face into her hands. "You're still Cosima."

The clone smirks and lets the blonde brush their noses, breathing in the other woman for a moment. "Yeah... But they won't know," she whispers, giving a small peck on Delphine's lower lip. "This is the way, Delphine. I can't let you be the one who comes out of this with nothing but trouble."

"You need to know exactly where you're going, what you're doing!" Delphine starts to break. "Be in contact with me all the time. I take you there, stay and we get out together."

Cosima shakes her head. "No. You take me and pick me up if possible," she says. "But you need to be elsewhere when I do my thing, be visible."

Delphine presses her lips together, thinking for a few seconds. "I can do you one better," she eventually comes up with a solution. "Marion has invited me for drinks. You get in while I'm with her, this way I can have some way to know what's happening, if she gets some sort of warning or something."

This time Cosima nods. "Yeah..." She says thoughtfully.

"Okay!" Delphine taps Cosima's legs in order to get up, but the brunette doesn't move them out if the way, instead she locks her legs around the blonde.

"Where are you going?" She asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Pen and paper," Delphine shrugs. "I need to show you the layout for the two floors."

"Can't we eat first?" Cosima moves on top of Delphine, trapping the doctor between the couch and her body.

"We can," Delphine says with a smile that grows when Cosima steals a kiss on the corner of her lips. "But I don't think that's what you have in mind."

Cosima grins shamelessly, not even bothered to be subtle about her intentions. She kisses the Frenchwoman again, more deeply this time, her hands find a way under Delphine's shirt, only barely smoothing the soft skin she encounters, hearing the other woman sigh contently and losing little time in pulling the shirt up and off.

"Semantics," she breaths against Delphine's lips before pulling her for another kiss.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damn, it has been way too long since I've updated this. I owe you all an apology, but somehow this story keeps going to the end of the pile and it's not that I don't thoroughly enjoy writing it, because I absolutely do, but I just never seem to have time to really think about it. Either way, very sorry! I want to thank all of you who keep remembering me of this and encouraging me to keep it going (which totally is my intention!).  
> This chapter doesn't add that much to the main plot, but it was a necessary step (I've taken the opportunity to give you some fluff/smut ;), so NFSW). The next two chapters will be solely focus on the main story and I assume that will be the end, although I do have something else in mind, but I want to see how it will go.

For the second night in a row, Delphine wakes up with Cosima comfortably curled around her, both naked underneath the thin cotton sheet. The previous night they had a late dinner, have gone over the halls, stairs and doors Cosima will have to cross, the cameras she has to do the best to avoid to get to where the several samples of the cure is stored. In a big lab, inside a password protected walk-in refrigerator against the furthest wall. And lastly the safest way for Cosima to reach the top floor and break into Marion's office. Delphine's perspective to a successful mission improved, even if only slightly.

Cosima had seemed interested, focused on the task ahead of her, asking questions about the layout the doctor had roughly drawn before her. Still doubt lingers, increased by the anxiety of having the clone walk the unfamiliar halls all by herself, with Delphine too far to provide any real support if needed be. Cosima's assurances that even if she gets caught she'll be safe did very little to appease Delphine's fears, but she forced herself not to be too obvious in her doubts and tried to drink of the positive energy that the American kept showing. The last thing Cosima needs is to feel the blonde's nervousness. Doubt oneself is the first step to failure. So Delphine had smiled and nodded and when they had desiccated the plan as much as they could and Cosima, grown tired of it all, had refocused her attention back to the blonde, she didn't fight it. Instead she welcomed it as the great gift that it was and accepted the clone's undivided attention.

Only in the morning, as Delphine wakes up and Cosima continues sound asleep next to her, does she lets the anxiety she feels in the pit of her stomach resurface. The shower helps her regain some footing, her mind fully alerted helps her put things into focus. Delphine goes over what she has to do: talk with Marion again, schedule the damn drinks she really has no desire to have with the older woman.

Delphine doesn't want to seem too eager and only close to the lunch hour, after she has done all the rounds on her team's work, does she pick up the phone and asks Claude to connect her with Marion's office. After a couple of minutes the phone on her desk rings and her assistant informs her that Marion is on the line.

"Good morning, Delphine," she hears the other woman. "What can I do you for?" She asks with a small chuckle.

Delphine forces herself to laugh. "Oh, it's nothing serious, really," Delphine says with a cheer in her voice that she doesn't feel. "I was just wondering... about that drink. Is the invitation still on?"

"Of course it is," Marion replies. "Although I didn't think you'd be asking this soon."

"I just don't know how long you'll be in town and... well, it would be nice to catch up," the doctor sounds casual, amicable. "I feel like things have been awkward between us and this sounds like a good idea to clear the air."

"I'll be around for a couple more days," Marion offers without getting into specifics and that doesn't escape Delphine. "Whenever is good for you, as long as it's after work." A small pause. "Bring Claire if you like."

Delphine grimaces after that remark, but chooses not to address it. "What about tomorrow?" She proposes with fake enthusiasm.

"Perfect!" Marion says excitedly. "We go straight from work. I know the perfect place where we can have a nice, quiet meal."

"Yes, that'll do." Delphine agrees and ends the call with a short "see you then."

The Frenchwoman leans her head back, closes her eyes and sighs deeply. She thinks back to when she was young and eager to start her collaboration with DYAD, how she was so smitten with the prospect of working with the most brilliant minds in the field. She was naive. She did it for the science and ignored how office politics could stand in the way of her career's progression. But she learned quickly and it didn't take long before politics swallowed her idealism and she was one of them.

In those days she would've been excited at the idea of having a one-on-one with one of the most powerful members of the institute. Today she sees it as an obligation; something Delphine knows she must do but no longer wants it. The novelty has faded and this is not recent. She has lost the excitement about her position in DYAD long before she fully realized how ruthless the could be. Science is not just science, it's about the people who find a new lease on life due to the most recent discovery, patients are not numbers in a thick file, they are humans with feelings, a past and, hopefully a future. She knew this before, but it was never so clear as it became when Cosima came into her life.

Delphine will do all she can to help Cosima and her sisters. She's going to use her position in DYAD to their advantage. But she wonders what will her future look like once that's done, once she manages to help them - assuming everything goes according to plan. Does she really want to continue to work for people who've showed no scruple in sentencing others to death? Can she really come to work and look in the eyes and smile at people who saw the clones as expendable?

Never was she so close to doubt her choices in life. In fact, even knowing the people she has been working with were not entirely innocent, until recently she was proud of what she has accomplished. At a young age, Delphine had a stable life, she worked hard but was rewarded for it and, until he dalliance with Cosima, she appeared to have a bright future at DYAD. For the first time Delphine is starting to think that she should consider leaving the institute and restart anew, somewhere else.

Her reputation is still intact and for that, as much as she hates it, she should thank Leekie. He had taken the fall and kept everyone else out of the spotlight that had soiled DYAD with the clones' debacle. Perhaps as if she's able to get out unscarred of what she's about to do, is not such a bad idea to look for another job. Perhaps something with less ethical gray areas, something less stressful and which doesn't keep her awake at night. A teaching position or a job at a laboratory. She misses working in a lab, directly with science, instead of the position she now holds, with little science and lot of red tape.

She assumes Claire will also welcome the change. Less responsibility also means less hours spent at work, which is something her girlfriend constantly complains about with a certain degree of reason. The income decrease that this change will certainly represent is of little substance. For years now she has made more than enough money to sustain their livelihoods. Besides, what's the point of having so much money if you don't have the time to spend it. Several countries she wants to visit remain uncrossed from her bucket list and for what? So she can kiss the ass of people who'll turn their backs on her at the first opportunity they have? If the problems she faced after her involvement with Cosima has proved anything is that she won't find a single ally in these people.

And more than once the exception is Leekie. She has to give him credit for that, at least he has always remained loyal to his principles, while the people still working at DYAD don't have any. Their only concern is profit and the power and fear that comes along with it. If it will eventually earn them respect it's only a side bonus which they'll use to their advantage and profit some more. Stuck in a vicious cycle, like a hamster in wheel and Delphine no longer wants to be a part of it.

Delphine surprises herself when she notices, by the end of the day, that she's eager for the clock to announce five in the afternoon - yet another sign that perhaps her tenure at DYAD has reach its expiration date. And she's actually relieved to get home, immediately kicking her high heels to the corner and dropping her computer case on the couch. Voices come from inside her bedroom and Delphine peeks in there to see Cosima on her bed, sitting cross-legged with her back against the backboard and the computer on top of her legs. The clone gives her a subtle smile when she sees Delphine, but makes no other gesture, her attention on the screen and the other woman talking.

"...and Alison, of course, is losing her shit." The British lilt leaves little doubt who's speaking on the other side of the conversation.

"So? What else is new?" Cosima's says, discreetly rolling her eyes in Delphine's direction. "Your job is to make sure she does nothing stupid."

"I'm not good at babysitting!" Sarah's complaint fills the bedroom.

"Ask Felix to help you..."

Delphine still hears Cosima's suggestion as she turns around and quietly shuts the door to give them some privacy. She moves to the bathroom and takes her time to refresh herself after the long day.

"Everything okay?" Delphine asks when she reaches the living room and finds Cosima stretched on the couch, zapping through channels.

"Alison thinks this is taking too long," the American answers, looking back at Delphine and rising her legs for the blonde to sit.

"Then she'll be happy to know that tomorrow we should be done with this," Delphine says, sitting down and pulling Cosima's legs to her lap. "One way or the other."

"Tomorrow?" Cosima asks with a raised brow.

Delphine nods. "I've talked with Marion," she explains. "We're going for drinks tomorrow after work."

"Oh... O-okay," Cosima sounds unsure, her voice wavers for a few heartbeats.

"You're sure you want to do this, Cosima?" The Frenchwoman asks, sensing the clone's hesitation. "We could think of another way. You don't have to go in there alone."

"We've been through this, Delphine," Cosima says, sounding more determined. "This is the best solution."

"Being the best doesn't mean it's any good," Delphine presses, but her hands smooth along Cosima's legs, not wanting to get into any sort of conflict over this. "In fact, I'd be much more tempted to call it the least bad."

"Well, sometimes the least bad is all we have."

Delphine smiles a little. "Alright!" She concedes and squeezes one of the legs on top of hers. "Have you been inside all day?"

Cosima shrugs. "Well... Yeah! Where else am I gonna go? Don't know anyone, don't know the city..."

The blonde's smile opens up as an idea enters her mind. "Wanna go out? Have dinner?"

"You sure that's a good idea?" Cosima asks, but Delphine can see the excitement starting to build.

"We'll stay out of the center," the doctor says. "The best restaurants are away from the tourist's spots anyway."

"Make the best of our last day of freedom?" Cosima's dark humour surfaces and it's surprisingly effective.

Delphine laughs. "Sure! Why not?"

Delphine is well familiarized with the area and its hidden gems. She leaves the car where it is, opting for a walk in the crisp spring evening. They walk side-by-side, a few other couples seem to have chosen the same way to spend the night and they pay them no mind. A few blocks away from Delphine's apartment they reach a small, discreet restaurant, the type of place one needs to know where they're going to uncover. The doctor opens the door and Cosima steps inside and they wait by the door for one of the waiters to get to them.

It's a cozy place, small, with no more than seven tables, all distributed along the room with privacy in mind. The walls painted a deep green, conferring a comfortable environment, framed black and white photographs of the more emblematic monuments of Paris spread over the walls, lightening low, aided by a single candle burning on the center of each table. The waiters are all in dark jeans and black shirts with a small white stamp with the logo of the restaurant over the left breast pocket and one of them, a young black woman with a big smile approaches them.

Despite the early hours, the restaurant is already packed and they strike luck when one table is already clearing. They wait for a few minutes before they can sit and the cart is placed in front of them. The waiter leaving them to choose.

"Nice place," Cosima decides, smiling widely and looking around herself, not interested in the menu.

"Yes," Delphine hums. "I used to come here from time to time when I was living at the apartment. Their food is delicious and they have an impressive wine selection."

Cosima laughs. "Want to wine me and dine me?"

The blonde smirks and opens the menu to scan the options. "Is that such a bad thing?"

"No, no, no... Not at all," the clone says quickly, waving her hands. "In fact, I'm even gonna let you order for me. I'm completely at your disposal tonight." She finishes with a wink in Delphine's direction.

The doctor chuckles awkwardly, feeling the American's words sinking deep into her stomach. "And that has nothing to do with the fact that you can't understand a thing in the menu?" She plays it cool.

"Entirely irrelevant!" Cosima states firmly, her hand slicing through the air in a decisive gesture.

There's a small breeze carried by the night when they step outside the restaurant, it feels warm against Delphine's skin, heated by the wine that accompanied their meal. She has half a mind to suggest they find a place to spend a couple more hours, but Cosima's arm looping around hers and pushing the doctor's body closer is rapidly changing her plans for the rest of the night.

During the entire dinner the clone had been dropping hints, charming her way into Delphine's heart. Not that it surprised the blonde, she knows how Cosima can be incredibly irresistible when she wants and it seems to be the case tonight. The American seems determined to put their differences aside, at least for the night. There was no talk of taking sides, they never discussed what lays ahead them and what it means for the future.

"So what's next?" Cosima asks in a voice that drags a little, slightly intoxicated.

Delphine looks at the small woman for a few steps and notices the dopey grin on her lips. "Perhaps a small walk will do us well," the blonde says, thinking it might be a good idea to walk off some of the alcohol.

Cosima's grin falters for a short second, but she quickly recovers from the mild disappointment. "Alright then..." she nods. "Lead the way!"

Delphine takes them to a nearby park, a few people still out, mostly young couples or a few Parisians walking their dogs. The chilly breeze of the spring night rustles the leaves of the trees along the gravel path that the streetlights keep well illuminated aside from the branches that here and there have grown too long and shadow the road. The two women are silent and Delphine wonders if the cause of the quietness of the usually chatty clone is what awaits her in the following day. Cosima has to be worried, despite the casual approach to the situation, it must be something that concerns her. It would be foolish not to acknowledge the danger that awaits them and Cosima is bright enough not to ignore it.

"If something bad happens," Delphine ends the silence with a quiet voice, "if things don't go according to plan and you somehow get caught, I won't rest until I make things right."

"You will break me out of prison?" Cosima asks playfully, but the worry is present in her tone.

"I hope it won't come to that," the doctor chuckles and pulls Cosima closer to her. "But I'll intercede on your behalf. I will threaten to disclose everything I have on DYAD, including their refusal to help when they were the only ones who could do something. I'll reveal Rachel's existence, how their inertia to do something resulted in the deaths of several women," Delphine keeps going and the more she talks the more she's convinced she wouldn't hesitate to do what she's vowing to. "And if threatening doesn't work, I will follow through. I don't care who I take down with me."

Cosima stops them, pulling at Delphine's arm until the taller woman looks back and stands before her. "That's quite a statement considering that only a couple of days ago you were more worried about your future in the institute than what they did or planned to do," Cosima comments with a serious semblance.

"That's not entirely true," Delphine counters. "I only needed to know if what I was risking my career for was worth it."

"And now you think it does?" The clone asks with a raised brow. No so much doubtful of the Frenchwoman's words as she is curious.

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't!"

Delphine won't share with Cosima the doubts that assaulted her earlier regarding her future at DYAD, regardless of the faith of their venture. Delphine won't tell Cosima that, even if everything goes according to plan, and they somehow pull this off, she's not so sure about wanting to remain a part of DYAD. That decision is a personal one, something she needs to figure out for herself and her independent streak will not allow her to take notice of outside opinions - either coming from Cosima or anyone else.

"I think one day it will come to you that you're better than this," Cosima says softly, but there's a certainly in her stare. "You'll realize that you deserve more than a job with gray moral standards, more than being with someone who doesn't mind sharing you."

"Cosima... don't," Delphine warns. "We've talked about this..."

"I wouldn't," Cosima continues regardless. "If you were mine... the idea of someone else having you..."

"What if that was the only way?" Delphine challenges, sensing that she can't keep Cosima from discussing the topic. "What if it was a condition for us to be together?"

Cosima's ducks her head and shakes it slowly. "I couldn't," she answers in a whisper.

"Then you have your answer," the blonde says equally low. She takes no pride in proving herself right, there's even an hint of regret clutching her heart, but it doesn't make it a lie and it needed to be said.

The doctor assumed that, after saying this, Cosima would step back from her, giving herself space to absorb Delphine's words, like she has done before. But this time something is different, Cosima starts to smile, a confident grin stretches her lips and arms move around Delphine's slender waist to pull both women closer.

"I didn't think I would change your mind right this minute," the brunette's voice is smooth, caring, not defiant in the least. "I said you'll give me reason in time," she goes to the top of her toes and brushes their lips. "And when that day comes, and I know it will, you'll remember my words and hope it's not too late."

Delphine takes the kiss, allowing it to become more intense, her own arms tug the small woman to her. "And you're a pretentious little shit," she whispers in Cosima's ear when her mouth moves to the clone's neck.

Both of Cosima's hands go to Delphine's cheeks and she pushes the blonde away from her, making their eyes meet. "Perhaps," she nods. "Or maybe I'm right and you're too afraid to admit it." She stops to kiss awaiting lips. "But I'll take what I have for now."

"Meaning?" Delphine arches a brow, amused by the other woman's smugness.

"Meaning you should take me home so we can fuck all night," Cosima whispers with her lips grazing against Delphine's. "I want to enjoy my last night of freedom, because by this time tomorrow I might be in jail."

"Don't say that!"

Delphine still has the mind to rebuke the last words coming out of Cosima's mouth, but most of her focus is on the first declaration.

Delphine locks the front door and turns around, finding Cosima with a sly grin waiting for her. The small woman approaches her and without a word begins to undo the buttons of the blonde's coat, the same smile on her lips while her eyes are in her own hands, slowly working to release the buttons and pull the coat from Delphine's shoulders. Cosima's mouth starts to probe the doctor's neck, soft lips rolling against light skin while equally smooth hands move inside the taller woman's sweater, grazing against her hips. Delphine sighs, allowing Cosima all the tender explorations she desires.

She can't deny that there's something incredibly alluring about being the sole object of Cosima's attention, the American knows how to make her lover feel wanted. When the brunette, still with ease movements, removes Delphine's shirt and bra and finds the blonde's lips to kiss, Delphine feels like everything is right, she embraces the petite woman and it feels like this is all she needs. Even if she knows it's momentarily, fleeting, she can't deny the way he heart swells with the tenderness of Cosima's attention.

Delphine pulls Cosima's shirt over her head. The dreadlocks free fall over the clone's shoulders and she continues to smile, self-assurance painted on Cosima's features, a confidence that has always been a part of her and that Delphine always found so enticing. Attractive in every way that manifests itself, either with fearless words or bold gestures. And it's that same boldness that Delphine now sees in Cosima's expression when, after leaving her glasses on top of a small table, the small woman hooks her fingers in the loops of Delphine's jeans and pushed them inside and into the bedroom.

It occurs to Delphine, as Cosima pushes her onto the bed and crawls over her body, that if it was anyone else other than Cosima, she wouldn't find this circumstance so appealing. She doesn't particularly likes to be dominated, Delphine is the one who's in control in her intimate encounters. But it appears her rules don't apply to Cosima. With the striking woman there's a thrill running down her spine when she sees Cosima hovering over her, with bright brown eyes, filled with mischief or when brazen hands find Delphine's discovered chest and fondles them with purpose or when soft lips go to hers and a tongue is demanding attention. No, Cosima is different in every way, Delphine knows that - probably has known since the beginning and has accepted and embraced it. It's why when the American hastily works on her belt and strips her bare, Delphine offers no resistance, she doesn't try to turn the tables as she would with everyone else. And the reason why when Cosima is moving to free herself of her own trousers, Delphine remains laid, blatantly staring at the other woman with an hungry gaze and biting her lower lip, feeling the pressure between her legs build up just by looking at Cosima.

With this lover, and unlike others, Delphine craves to be taken. Maybe it's because, and despite their differences, she recognizes and respects the strength running wild inside Cosima. Maybe it takes a woman as determined - and, at times, as stubborn - as herself to let Delphine surrender her dominance and allow her partner to guide her. Of course it helps when the counterpart knows how to fully take advantage of it. Cosima doesn't hesitate to place both her hands on each of Delphine's thighs and spreads her legs, lowering herself and pulls the blonde to her compact body when the hands go to her hips and slide underneath, taking Delphine's ass into her hands.

Propelled by Cosima's actions, Delphine sits up, her arms and legs wrap around the small body and she takes a more active role. Her mouth is assertive against Cosima's lips, her tongue sinks carelessly into the other woman's mouth and both of them groan. Delphine's hips are sliding against Cosima's skin and she can no longer disguise her desire, proven by the slickness between her thighs.

Cosima is subtle in the way she drags her right hand along Delphine's inner thigh and finds her sex, in the way she starts to explore with smooth touches without being too eager, in the calculated way her fingers brush softly over aroused flesh. Delphine gasps and breathes in deeply, moans softly as Cosima continues to tease the excited nub and when she sinks her digits in the blonde's depths, she does so with deliberate ease. Delphine, on the other hand, is quick to lose her composure, her hips search the touch with vigorous movements, her right hand leaves the back of Cosima's neck and gropes the supple flesh of a breast. It always manages to surprise Delphine the type of lover the brunette can be: there's a clear intention to each touch. When her mouth goes to the doctor's ear and whispers "I love having you" in the sweetest of voices and nibbles the tender flesh, there's an undeniable design to her words and actions and when the left hand leaves the blonde's ass and takes purchase of golden curls and forces Delphine's head back to expose the neck that's quickly showered with kisses the goal is always only one: to have Delphine drowning deeper into a sea of lust, catapult her desire to new levels seldom explored before.

And Cosima is incredibly efficient in this or maybe it's Delphine who's so receptive to this sort of attention. Or perhaps is a combination of both. Either way, the intention is there and the result is glaring. When Cosima rolls her fingers through slick skin and buries them back in Delphine's sex with a strong motion, the Frenchwoman thrusts her hips one last time before letting herself fall back onto the mattress and allows Cosima to take full control of the events.

The American groans in a low pitch coarse voice and immediately moves to take what Delphine willingly offers her. Bracing herself with the left hand, Cosima hovers over the other woman, claims a deep kiss from Delphine's lips and uses her waist to gain momentum with the motion of her fingers. The clone's mouth is yet to find its destination though and Delphine hasn't had the time to recover from the hard kiss when she feels Cosima's lips traveling lower, her tongue circles a hard nipple briefly and continues south.

There's no resistance left in Delphine when she feels the drowning wave approaching, she doesn't even think of fighting it when she feels the tension in her entire body reaching its limit. Instead she basks in the overwhelming sensation, her hand goes to Cosima's dreadlocks and pulls the other woman down, as if it was possible to get closer. Cosima's tongue slides along her sex, her lips brush the small nub,twirling around it, grazing lightly while her fingers continue to move inside her in steady, deep thrusts. And when the wave comes, it doesn't feel like drowning at all. It's a softness, a warmth that surrounds and swallows her, yes, but she indulges in it, welcomes it inside her and fills her with a staggering completion.

Cosima's feels inevitable in more ways than one and while Delphine was never the type to try to fight faith, something inside her has told her that this time she should have. The voice is still there, she simply has chosen to ignore it. Perhaps only this once it will be okay to do so, allow herself to have what she wants without thinking of the repercussions. Delphine's not sure she deserves it, if she has earned the right to do as she pleases, but her impending separation from Cosima gives her the illusion this is something she deserves, she has earned. What she has done for it, the sacrifices she has made to have it, she doesn't know. Most likely she still hasn't and this is something she'll have to pay for in the future. A credit life has now on her. However, feeling Cosima come up to her arms and nestle against her body, feeling the captivating woman spread kisses along her torso and sighing contently has Delphine believing that whatever price she has to pay, it will be worth it a thousand times over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're following "The S Supremacy" sorry for the double note. Christmas is coming! And I'm taking prompts/suggestions for a short season story. Hit me up in the comments/reviews or private messages.


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